Wilmington's Fiore Family Wins ABC Christmas Light Competition

WILMINGTON, MA — Wilmington's Fiore family won the "Great Christmas Light Fight" on ABC Wednesday, taking home $50,000 and a trophy for their Christmas village light show.

Charles Fiore, 23, spearheaded the light show with help from family and friends from Tewksbury and Wilmington.

"This is one of the best moments of my life," Fiore said. "We came out on top. It's a great feeling."

But Fiore also repeated what he said before his win: He loves the way his light displays make other people happy.

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Fiore impressed the show's host and judge Taniya Nayak with his attention to detail — each light is 2.5 inches apart — and the elaborate, 22-foot set he built for the lights. Construction took three months.

The episode aired at 8 p.m. Wednesday. The Fiores faced a Utah family, a Missouri family and a New York family.

In addition to his brother Jonas, Fiore was helped by friends Wesley Moreira and Jason Donahue of Tewksbury and Ed Gallagher and Joshua Rizzo of Wilmington.

Fiore told Patch he has been creating Christmas light displays for 16 years. Last year, he had to step it up when ABC filmed this year's episodes of the show. He brought in his brother and four friends and built a massive Christmas village at his family's Concord Street home.

Fiore was inspired by "The Osborne Family Spectacle of Dancing Lights" at Disney World, which he visited in 2012.

Nayak commented the display made her feel like she was at a theme park. That was the goal, Fiore said.

Previously on Patch: Wilmington, Tewksbury Residents To Compete On Holiday Light Show

Hoping to see Fiore's display in person? You're in luck: He built basically the same display this year so people who watch the show can see his handiwork. The light display is at 12R Concord Street and open until around 9:30 p.m. on weeknights and 10 p.m. on weekends, Fiore said. He asks that people drive through as quickly as possible, as there can be a lot of traffic.

Christopher Huffaker can be reached at 412-265-8353 or chris.huffaker@patch.com.