Outside, it’s barely above freezing. Inside a blue barn in Smith Park, it’s also barely above freezing.
It’s a few days before Christmas, and a dozen retirees sit in swivel chairs. They wear hats and coats embroidered with the words: “Grandpa Gang.”
“We had a little heater in the corner, but it didn’t do much,” said Barney Strassburger, one of the original grandpas. “The main thing is it’s got a coffee pot.”
Strassburger laughs while he tinkers with a light bulb strand. The 87-year-old leads the volunteer group responsible for making Light Up Middletown happen every year.
This year, most of the work is done. But some of the men still show up every day — even when it’s windy. And even when it’s snowing.
“That’s half the fun — getting together,” Strassburger said.
Before it gets dark, the grandpas add blue lights to pine trees at the front tunnel entrance — which they say already has more than 100,000 bulbs. Strassburger started the Grandpa Gang 25 years ago with six light displays. Now, Light Up Middletown runs more than 65.