Lights for PD Shimmers Back On in Plymouth
If holiday spirit could be measured in lights and music, few places could compete with the Christmas cheer that’s on display in a Plymouth neighborhood.
Since 2010, PD Shimmers has dazzled passersby with a light show synchronized to a soundtrack on FM radio.
It’s a tradition developed by Mike Justak, a Plymouth resident who was diagnosed with Parkinson’s 14 years ago.
“All along, the design of the show has reflected a struggle with Parkinson’s,” Justak said.
Each of the show’s 60,000 flashing lights are designed to represent the Americans diagnosed with Parkinson’s in 2018.
“As commercial or whatever you want to think of it, you know, it has impact,” Justak said.
But the fact that the show is even happening this year may come as a surprise to longtime fans.
“Last year especially, I made the announcement it was gonna be my last year,” Justak said.
Maintaining a show of this magnitude, while dealing with a neurological disease that affects movement, is no easy task.
“This requires me to go to work five hours a day, every day, for 30 days straight,” Justak said. “And I’m not regimented like that anymore.”
Neighbor Steps In To Help
Yet instead of pulling the plug, Justak found help from one of his neighbors, Matt Dunn.
“At the end of the season I knocked on his door and met him and I said, ‘hey you know, I do something for Christmas outside my house for Meals on Wheels, Dunn said. “And your show is so cool. What if I were to help you with the parts that you find to be difficult of the show?’”
Dunn already had a display outside of his home comprised of characters from the old Dayton’s holiday shows. So it became a natural collaboration that allowed PD Shimmers to shimmer on, albeit mostly in a different location.
And ultimately, Justak still decided to do much of the setup this year after all.
“I look at this as a way to fight back again, which is what I’ve always tried to do,” Justak said.
That determination, combined with the kindness of strangers, will help spread the holiday cheer for another season.
“The lights represent more than just a season,” Justak said. “They represent people.”
PD Shimmers runs every day through Dec. 28 from 5-10 p.m. along Juneau Lane in Plymouth. There’s also a smaller show on Ithaca Lane that runs Thursday through Sunday from 5-8 p.m.
