2 Suburban Dads Go All Out With Their Halloween Displays

PALATINE, Ill. (CBS) -- It's a little over two weeks until Halloween, and some neighborhoods are starting to look spooky.

The Morning Insiders found two suburban fathers really getting into the spirit. As CBS 2's Lauren Victory reported Thursday, the pandemic has allowed them to take dad duties to the max.

Being locked up for quarantine may seemlike a nightmare. But it has allowed adventurous dad Aaron Vokoun of Palatine to create his dream.

Since July, Vokoun has transformed his porch into a pirate ship – plank and all. The theme based around Robert Louis Stevenson's "Treasure Island" blossomed from there.

How much did Vokoun make himself? "You know, I would say probably 70, 80 percent of it," he said.

"I would get up and design and create and paint and sculpt," Vokoun said. "The inflatables on the roof, I put brackets so it could handle the wind. I've got a fog machine and I built a chiller for it."

Vokoun even constructed a candy cannon, measuring six feet long for social distancing.

"When you have a kid, as they get older, they get excited about things," he said.

Children, and extra time saved by not commuting, inspired all the intricate details on Vokoun's creation.

Four miles away at Misha Storozhuk's house in Buffalo Grove, the IT whiz taught himself how to make a light show because his son and daughter requested one.

"They're like, 'Wow, can you do it again?'" he said.

Eleven thousand bulbs now cover Storozhuk's lawn, siding, and garage.

He has spent five weeks programming every ghost and goblin. It's a stress reliever – and not just for him.

"I like when people come and at least at that moment, they're not thinking about all of the problems, all of the personal problems, COVID problems - they just enjoy it," Storozhuk said.

And what do his kids think?

"Oh, they love it," Storozhuk said.

The Palatine pirate ship is open for viewing now on Mill Valley Road and Arrowhead Drive.

The light show in Buffalo Grove, at 860 Woodhollow Lane, officially goes live on Friday.

 

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