Jack Daniel's Independence Project - Holiday Light Spectacular

My name is Chris Schneider and I am 35 years old (DOB - 10/30/1976)

Every year for the past 5 years my best friend, Ryan (DOB - 06/07/1976) and I have put together a Holiday Light Spectacular on my Brooklyn row house.  We use this event as a creative outlet and our way to try out new and innovative ideas through a light and sound show that serves as our gift to the community.  Over the past few years that we have been doing this it has grown into a real community event.  We have reached a point where we must do something bigger and better each year to really make an impact.  Throughout the course of our shows we have created animatronics, innovative lighting concepts, computerized control systems, motorized stages and special effects.  We have never asked for any money from the community to watch the show.  We want to keep this a free event that all people are able to enjoy as many times as they would like.

This event has gained a lot of press and we have been featured on local news channels, featured in the Daily News in the Sunday edition, received accolades from many blogs and websites.  Last year CBS.com listed us as one of the top 6 light shows to see in New York City.  Our little Brooklyn row house display was in the ranks of Rockefeller Center, Saks Fifth Ave. and the Winter Garden.  We were overwhelmed by all the support and kind words from all those in our community.  We have also begun collecting non-perishable food items during our opening weekend of the event to help local food banks that can be stretched thin over the holiday season.  This is something we intend to continue and grow with this years show.

As the scale of our show has grown so has the personal financial burden.  This contest is the perfect way for us to continue producing our show on a scale that the community has come to expect and ensure it will be a stable part of the community for years to come!  Thank you for this opportunity to showcase something we love and also the possibility of making it even better and more spectacular than ever.