Celebration of Lights
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| Celebration of Lights | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Winter holiday season |
| Begins | Thanksgiving |
| Ends | Early January |
| Location(s) | Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania |
| Inaugurated | 1991 |
| Most recent | 2011 |
| Attendance | 170,000 (2011)[1] |
The Celebration of Lights was a winter holiday season Christmas lights show in Pittsburgh.[2] Held at Hartwood Acres Park from 1991 to 2011, it generated funds for WTAE-TV's "Project Bundle-Up" charity and the Salvation Army.[2]
The show consisted of a 3.5 mile drive through Hartwood Acres Park.[3] Over the 20 year life of the show, it generated $3.7 million for charity.[2] In 1991, the 28 displays had 250,000 lights; by 2011 it had grown to 2,000,000 lights.[1][4] The Oglebay Winter Festival of Lights is a similar event at Oglebay Park in Wheeling, West Virginia.[5]
In 2010, a 3-year sponsor, Rite Aid withdrew from sponsorship.[6]
In September 2012, Chief Executive of Allegheny County Rich Fitzgerald announced that he was cancelling the Celebration of Lights due to inability to find corporate sponsorship.[2] The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette defended the decision in light of public outcry.[7] Following the announcement, private citizens began to search for new sponsors.[8]
