The announcement on the Family 4th home page almost reads like a bad April Fool’s Day joke; and at first, I thought it was a prank since One Reel made the announcement to the media on Monday morning. But as the day wore on, and more media outlets were announcing the cancellation, I realized it was the real deal:
Soooo what, that’s it? No last minute plea? No pitch to giant corporations? Or is this *final* as in — sometime in May, someone will swoop in and save the day? I just couldn’t wrap my head around this cancellation notice. I mean, given that half the city turns out to watch the show every year, I had a hard time believing that local corporations weren’t interested in sponsoring a 25-year tradition. Besides, we’ve been down this road before, remember?
Then, on Tuesday, I heard Tom Douglas on KIRO Radio. You may remember that in 2009, he stepped up to make a plea to local businesses to help fund Family 4th after Washington Mutual went away. Within hours, Douglas had helped bring in the money needed to fund the show that year.
So he made another plea yesterday, asking folks to send an email to [email protected] if they want to help by making a donation (oh, and he also stressed, “Don’t send me money!”). He’ll bring that information to the Mayor and Tim Burgess to see what sort of action plan (if any) they can come up with between now at July 4.
But at the end of the day, Tom adds, “You still have to have a promoter”. If he can help raise the $500,000, he would like One Reel to step-in one last time this year to produce the show since it takes so many people to organize such a huge event. “If we can do it, we should make it happen.”
Of course, it wouldn’t necessarily be the end of the the world if the fireworks show doesn’t happen this year. There are still so many ways to enjoy our nation’s birthday. In fact, here’s a handy list of ideas.
Why is One Reel even involved with this event when, every year, they refuse (or don’t know how) to fundraise for it?
There is another news story out in which the director of One Reel says definitely they will not do it.
I am fien with that.. think how much money was used for 10 minutes of wild fire in the sky.. and hwo many hungry kids we have in schools.. etc.. I’sd like to see the money put towards bettering life in our world here.
I liked (not) how One Reel stresses that they don’t make any money off this. Gee, does that have anything to do with how lackadaisical they are about it? Ya think?
/r
wow, it is an incredible lot of work otrun these things. So easy to criticize One Reel because they are tired of doing it. Why not step up? Rob, Doug, go for it.
Does anyone really think that cancelling the fireworks will result in $500,000 being donated to feed the hungry instead?
As a former houseboater, I dreaded the dangerous drunks who damaged property and fought on July 4th. I stay away from the crowds ever since. I have cleaned up after w/supplied from Starbucks.
I used to love fireworks, but many celebrations get out of hand. If people don’t want to support it….
i am not going to cry if the neighborhood isn’t overrun this year.
I hope they find sponsors. I love the 4th every year here. I love all the people, the bustle, the crowds. It feels like we’re the center of the city. I love sitting out on Wallingford ave for the show, and my kids running a very profitable treat stand outside our house.
I hope it is canceled. It’s an expensive waste of time and it freaks the hell out of the dogs. Pet lovers unite and keep the fireworks canceled!!
Good riddance. Tired of drunks blowing stuff up in front of my house after the fireworks show.
I’m with Chuck. Sheesh, it’s just one day to celebrate. We spend the day visiting friends around the hood and take in the festivities at Gasworks. My kids love it too. The rest of y’all are grumps!
NPR reads The Constitution on the morning of the 4th – several sentences are read in turn by familiar voices from NPR . It’s very moving.
I also will miss the fetivities at gasworks.
I will not miss the drunken noise and the firecrackes and fireworks set off in neighborhods, near cars.
I will nostalgically miss cleaning up the park the next day. What a mess!
I am with Chuck and Brian…..what is the matter with the rest of you? Don’t you remember the excitement of your childhood? I grew up in a small town in Wisconsin where they would shoot up ONE firework, wait five minutes, shoot up ONE more fire work, etc for about half an hour……and it was magic….even with the mosquitos. Would you really choose to deny this spectacular to your children and those of the rest of us who love this? Yes, there are many reasons that make perfect sense to not have fireworks….and I agree that the money could be much better spent in many different ways. And I agree that there are also a lot of alcohol fueled (some don’t need the alcohol to be) idiots who are disruptive….but still, it is a spectacle that we can all enjoy and which often causes families and friends to come together for the whole day. How often does that happen any more. Finally, you negatives can rag on One Reel, any one doing something is a target to people like you who do nothing but be critical. Truth is that they are the only ones who are taking a risk by stepping up. If the show is cancelled, they still have expenses for staff, etc. which will now not be paid.
@ abigail. Yes, I also find that NPR tradition very moving, but as I recall, they read the “Declaration of Independence,” not the Constitution. 🙂
@Jon, Chuck, & Brian — I’m totally with you. I love the fireworks, and I often don’t go farther than my second floor on 47th to see what I can see over the buildings and tree tops. And it only takes a few hours to get over how overrun we are, even up here.
OneReel is a production company, not a fundraising organization, and I can see how they burned out on this quickly. I hope Tom Douglas can get things moving again. I emailed to volunteer a small donation (in the big scheme of things) — hope some of the rest of you will, as well.
BTW, the first year Douglas stepped in to rescue the fireworks, I had a goal to email each of the donor businesses to thank them for their community spirit. It was one of the coolest experiences of my life. Some of the businesses were so small, they didn’t even have a presence on the web. But I got back so many personal emails from the business owners that I could track down, it was really rewarding!
The fireworks display at Gasworks has been one of the really special events in Wallingford and Seattle. I was completely stunned by the size, spirit and joy of the crowd at Gasworks when I first attended. OneReel did an incredible job synchronizing the music with the spectacular fireworks. It would be a big loss for the little kids and the big kids not to have this free show. It’s pretty ironic how these massive companies with their big overseas bank accounts and teeny taxes have such a hard time coming up with sponsorship of some Independence Day fireworks.
I did see a number of things about fundraising earlier this spring, including a Mar 31st One Real fundraising deadline. I just don’t think it caught our attention/interest like in years past:
http://www.seattlepi.com/local/article/Seattle-may-not-have-Fourth-of-July-fireworks-show-4327764.php
http://westseattleblog.com/2013/03/does-seattle-still-want-fireworks-annual-donation-drive-launches
good riddance to this extremely wasteful and enviro. destructive event, esp. at a time when our neighbors are suffering due to work loss, etc. thousands of dollars blown up in smoke for an event lasting less than an hour, really folks???!
sounds like a grown-up thing to cancel this, as well as the “blue angels” in July! but will the iwantwhatiwantwheniwantittohellwitheverything else crowd prevail??
I could live without the show, but there are people who support it and are not jerks, that’s an easy one.
Are there other ways to have fireworks happen on the 4th? Would fireworks lovers trade the giant artsy not-to-be-outdone corporate spectacle at one crowded location, for a bunch of slightly more pedestrian sets of a dozen starbursts at multiple locations, so most people could see fireworks from their homes? Just wondering whether this would in principle be an improvement or disappointment.
The mayor announced on his Facebook page this morning that he’s working on making a 4th of July fireworks show an annual tradition in Seattle. Here’s the post:
“A fireworks show on the Fourth of July is a civic tradition. I, like many Seattle residents, was disappointed to learn last week that there would not be fireworks this year at Gas Works Park. That’s why I am delighted to announce that we are working with Seafair and the Seattle Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce to craft a new and sustainable plan for Fourth of July fireworks in Seattle. I am optimistic that we will indeed have fireworks this year in our city. I thank Seafair and the Seattle Chamber of Commerce for their commitment to Seattle and for their leadership. We will announce more details soon.”
@carol meyer: It’s actually an all day event with activities for kids and live music at Gasworks Park. And, considering that the fireworks are enjoyed by literally hundreds of thousands of people, it really comes out to a dollar or two per person. Is that really too much? Just because you don’t enjoy it, would you really wish to deny that enjoyment to all those who do? Do you ever pay for something that you would consider entertainment or celebration? So, put your money where your mouth is and instead of spending any money on anything that isn’t absolutely necessary to survive, give it to charity instead! Otherwise, you’re a hypocrite. I give a good chunk of my paycheck to charities every month — and I will gladly contribute to keep the fireworks!
Who here has helped clean up Gasworks the next day afte rthis family fun.. the park is a cesspool of over-eating, over consumption, and the attitude of “the park is my garbage can” is negligent uncaring model for children.
I am against the unnecessary extravagance and waste as well as trashout.
It is possible to CHARGE at all entrances 5.00 per person to gather funds to pay fo rthe fireworks.