Fireworks

Fireworks should be held on the 4th of July.

For the past three years the city of Medford has held its Independence Day Fireworks on July 3. Prior to that, the city’s fireworks had been on the 4th of July.

The change was because of a three- year contract the city signed with an out of state fireworks company that puts on shows around the upper midwest. At the time, the city was lucky to get a company to do the fireworks display at all and as the saying goes, beggars can’t be choosers.

In the time since, a local pyrotechnics company, Big Daddy’s Fireworks has come on the scene and has built a reputation for putting on an excellent show. They have been hired by the Medford Area Chamber of Commerce for the past two years to put on the fireworks display as part of the Lighting of the Lights event held the Friday of Thanksgiving Weekend and have done the fireworks at the Medford Area Senior High School graduation ceremony, among other events in the region. I have been consistently impressed by their shows.

The company that has put on the fireworks in Medford for the past few years has been doing a good job, and for those of us who stuck out the rain on Monday night, it was worth the wait. However, those who were timing the show, thought it seemed a bit on the shorter side.

Each year, the city spends about $10,000 on fireworks using a combination of tax money and community donations. As a city taxpayer, I think this is money well spent to celebrate the birth of the United States and to continue what president John Adams wrote in one of his letters to his wife, Abigail: “It ought to be solemnized with Pomp and Parade, with Shews, Games, Sports, Guns, Bells, Bonfires and Illuminations from one End of this Continent to the other from this Time forward forever more.”

Fireworks, especially the good ones the pros use, are not cheap. Likewise, the fuel for the trucks and mobilization of workers are also not cheap. With a fixed budget, it is a reality that the distance a crew has to travel to put on a show will impact the show itself. It is a simple choice of putting fuel in the truck or into things that go boom and make crowds go “ooh” and “aaah.”

The city of Medford should act now to hire Big Daddy’s Fireworks to do the Medford display and at the same time bring it back to the 4th of July where it belongs. At the same time, the city should go back to the practice of turning off the Riverwalk streetlights during the fireworks and turning them back on after. Yeah, this could require paying an utility employee some overtime, but it was always a nice touch years past when the city did it.

Speaking as a service club member who has spent more hours and shoe leather hawking popcorn and snow cones in the city park then I care to think about, having the fireworks on the third and events in the park on the fourth, especially in years where the holiday is midweek, puts a major strain on the volunteers. Many volunteers are working full-time and find it difficult, or impossible, to leave work early on the day before a holiday to do the set-up work. This reduces the groups that are able to participate which impacts the number of individuals and families in the park.

In the past, organizers of the Medford event would plan more grown-up-themed activities targeted to younger adults such as bands on the night before and follow it up with family-oriented activities on the fourth itself. This has not been practical in the city in recent years. Having activities for adults in their 20s and 30s that do not involve children is necessary for the long-term health of the community and should be encouraged.

The city of Medford needs to move quickly to contract with the local business and move the fireworks back to July 4 where they belong.