METROPOLIS' `HOMETOWN CHRISTMAS' AGLOW

METROPOLIS, Ill. -- "Hometown Christmas," a holiday lighting display with more than 500,000 lights featured in 20 displays ranging from leaping reindeer to snowflakes and fountains, operates nightly at Fort Massac State Park here.

The display is open each night from 5 to 10. A donation of $5 per carload is requested, with a portion of the profits designated for local charities.

The Massac County Chamber of Commerce and Tourism purchased the $300,000 display this year.

"This project represented an example of many factions working together," said Alan Bugg, chamber president. "We had people out here working from morning until night, in the dark, in the rain, and through it all they got the job done."

The display also depicts each of the gifts mentioned in the Christmas song, "The 12 Days of Christmas."

The display consists of molded metal shapes, some as big as 70 feet long and 30 feet high.

The display, said Bugg, is also animated. The drummers drum and the ladies dance.

Motorists may enter the lighting display through the Fifth Street entrance.

In addition to the park display, many other areas of Metropolis are decked out in holiday decorations. The business district sports new decorations, and Players Riverboat Casino is sponsoring "Winners Wonderland," an observance of the holiday season.