Tree-mendous! Port St. John woman has 110 Christmas trees

Not to sound like an Andy Williams song, but to me, the holiday season is the most wonderful time of the year.

It's not the presents or anything material or commercial. I just genuinely love how kind people are, the lengths people go to to, ahem, make spirits bright.

Sandy Gomme, for instance, transforms her Port St. John home into a winter wonderland worthy of admission. It's that good.

Here are some stats to back me up:

•110: number of themed Christmas trees on display

•2,000: number of pieces that make up her "pride and joy," a miniature Christmas Village

•200,000: rough estimate of Christmas lights inside and outside of her home

•5: number of remotes needed to activate the lights and displays

•60: amount in dollars of her electric bill during December

•4: number of months it takes to get the trees and Christmas village up and running

"I start decorating in August every year," she said, "and I finish around Thanksgiving."

Each tree has its own set of ornaments and lights. Some rotate, others have animatronics. The house becomes a warehouse of all things Christmas, with five showrooms, the smell of cinnamon sticks boiling on the stove and Christmas music filling the air. Not to mention: the whirs of holiday robots turning to and fro.

Of all the trees — some miniature, some 4-foot, 6-foot and 8-foot — asking Gomme to name her favorite is a mission impossible. After all, she has a gingerbread man tree, red Solo cup tree, Betty Boop, Snoopy, M&Ms, Bob the Builder, Hello Kitty, Raggedy Anne & Andy, Wizard of Oz, Pez dispenser, Tampa Bay Bucs, Florida State, the Grinch, a toilet paper tree, Econo Lodge with a beer bottle cap garland, and "A Christmas Story."

She has trees decorated in honor of people, too: the Ellen tree (as in Ellen Degeneres), Shania Twain, Danica Patrick, and "King of Queens" actress Leah Remini. An autographed picture of the actress sits atop.

"I sleep on the couch through the entire season till it's over," Gomme said. Well, she has to. She gave up her bed for the carnival section of the Christmas village, and she gave up her bedroom to display the entire Christmas village.

With a little help from daughter Christee White, her mom, sister and brother-in-law, Gomme plans to keep this tradition going for as long as she can.

"I get so excited, I'm just like a kid again," she said. "At 51, to see the look on people's faces makes every single ounce of blood and sweat worth it."

Gomme recently hosted an open house; 200 people got to geek out over Christmas, too. She'll host another on Sunday, then by appointment only.

Tree-mendous

Last week, Joe Beyel of the Rockledge Country Club called me about the club's tree, a 65-foot-tall, almost 100-year-old beauty that looks like a Christmas tree.

Since it looked like one, the club decorated it like one.

"I want to say it's got over 2,000 lights on it," Beyel said. "It took about two weeks worth of planning, took three guys and an 85-foot boom lift to get the guys up to the tree and about three days to (decorate) it."

Visible from Fiske Boulevard, Beyel said, "we'd love for people to stop by and admire the tree because we're proud of it."

This gift to Brevard will be lit up at 6 p.m. nightly through New Year's.

Christmas Tree Collection

What: Sandy Gomme's winter wonderland

When and where: Open house is at 6 p.m. Sunday, then by appointment online through Christmas at 6195 Alden Ave., Port St. John.

Cost: Free

Info: Call Gomme at 321-243-7719.

Contact Sangalang at 321-242-3630 or jsangalang@floridatoday.com. Follow Jennifer on Twitter: @byjensangalang.