It’s a birthday party and everyone is welcome!
What? Whose birthday? Where is the party? We are slowly creeping up on the 2016 Fire In The Sky celebration. The first fireworks drive-thru will be this Saturday from 9 a.m. until 2 p.m. at the Washington C.H. Fire Department on Market Street. You don’t even have to get out of your car. If your donation is $5 or more, you will receive a 2016 Fire In The Sky t-shirt.
“This is the 16th year for Fire In The Sky and it just keeps getting bigger and better,” said Dan Fowler, president of Fire In The Sky, the organization responsible for the yearly July 4 fireworks production at the Fayette County Fairgrounds.
Last year, due to grant money and corporate donations, Fire In The Sky purchased a new firing system that greatly enhanced the fireworks display. That still new firing system has had some modifications and Fowler indicated that the public will be able to view even more intricate shell displays.
Fowler said he wants to make clear that “donation monies did not buy the new firing system. If you made a donation last year or will this year, all donation monies go toward the purchase of the shells.”
There are 23 licensed technicians in the organization and it takes all of them to put on the display each year. No one gets paid and many of these skilled individuals work shows in other counties in order to help pay for the show here. Most of these “other county” shows are produced by the Rozzi Fireworks Company, which is where Fire In The Sky buys their shells. Due to this symbiotic relationship, Rozzi Fireworks has agreed to donate a fireworks show for this year’s Camp Dovetail participants.
This year’s fireworks show will be held on July 3, beginning at dark, with a simultaneous musical broadcast by WVNU. Also, WVNU, in conjunction with Rent-To-Own, will be sponsoring a party on the fairgrounds. Fowler, who notes that donations are down a bit from this time last year, is fond of saying “that no donation is too small and no donation is too big.” He also assures that all Fire In The Sky personnel “guarantee that your donations will go up in smoke!”
