Vietnam War Veteran Lights Up Christmas For 30th Year

SAN DIEGO COUNTY, CA — On any given night in December, you'll find a crowd of people at Christmas on Knob Hill. Children flock to the area to give Santa Claus their wish lists while parents snap photos to share on Facebook of the massive display of more than 100,000 glistening lights. The festive display also draws visitors from beyond San Diego County: folks from Vietnam, Macedonia and Lebanon are among those who have heard about the holiday attraction and wanted to see it for themselves.

But, Christmas on Knob Hill isn't a paid destination or hosted by a major business. Rather, it's a display at a quaint home on a hill in the city of San Marcos, about 25 minutes north of downtown San Diego. The man behind it all is Bill Gilfillen, a Vietnam War veteran who many years ago took it upon himself to create the Christmas wonderland.

For 30 years, the Ohio native has covered his property with sparkling holiday lights and a variety of glowing figures such as Star Wars characters, dogs, nutcrackers, the Statue of Liberty and of course, Santa Claus.

“The satisfaction I get out of this is making people happy,” said Gilfillen, 80. “It’s why I keep doing it — just to see the smile on people’s faces. It just brings me so much joy.”

It all began in 1987 when Gilfillen married wife, Elaine, who was a fan of decorating her home for any holiday. Together, they had four children who helped inspire him to deck out their home for the holidays.

“The children and Elaine were the main reason why I did this,” Gilfillen said. “They just love decorations.”

After just one year, the couple decided to add another element to their North Pole in California: a real-life Santa Claus.

“I never liked the Santa at the malls so I said to him, ‘Why don’t you dress up as Santa?’” Elaine Gilfillen said. “He put on a Santa suit and jumped in his pickup truck to visit our nieces and nephews, and they just loved him. When we came home, kids ran up to him so he stood out there for hours handing out candy canes. It just couldn’t stop from there.”

Now, Gilfillen — or Santa as he’s known to fans in the region — sees more than 2,700 children each year. He speaks to them for hours on end, patiently listening as they tell him of the items on their Christmas wish lists. He takes notes, memorizing the children's favorite characters so he can add them to his collection of figures come next year.

“He is just so genuine,” Elaine Gilfillen said. “All the children love him.”

But there’s another reason why Gilfillen has committed to creating this Christmas dream for the past three decades.

The son of a Methodist minister and factory worker, Gilfillen said he grew up poor during the Great Depression. At one point, his parents didn’t have the means to raise him or his siblings so he lived in an orphanage until he was 9 years old.

“We didn’t have this growing up because we couldn’t afford it,” Gilfillen said. “We went around and looked at other homes’ lights.”

Now with five grandchildren, Gilfillen is committed to bringing joy to others — especially the younger generation.

But it's not cheap. Gilfillen and his wife have spent more than $15,000 on decorations and pay roughly $2,000 on their electric bill to bring holiday cheer to the region every December. It also takes about three months to set up all the decorations, which range from a carousel to Mickey Mouse, a stork and gingerbread man — all to the tune of Christmas music.

“I knew when we bought this place that we could really decorate it well,” said Gilfillen, who served in the Navy from 1954 to 1977. “It’s a bit expensive but it’s so worthwhile. It’s for the youngsters.”

And, the community is grateful for the joy Gilfillen has brought to the region. In fact, during an interview with Patch, a woman brought Tony Gwynn memorabilia to Christmas on Knob Hill as a gift for him.

“You told me last year you loved him,” the visitor said.

A gracious Gilfillen confirmed he’s a big fan of the San Diego Padres, especially the beloved Hall of Famer, Gwynn.

“People remember things I don’t even remember,” said Gilfillen with a smile. “As long as I’m able to do this I will keep going. Hopefully, somebody will take it up when I can’t do this anymore.”

Christmas on Knob Hill is at 1639 Knob Hill Road in San Marcos, California. The light display runs from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. daily until Dec. 30. Santa Claus is available from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. Dec. 13 to Dec. 23.

— Photos by Hoa Quach; Video by Emma Jehle