What’s the Fourth of July without fireworks?

City Commissioner and Sundown Salute Fundraising Committee member Jim Sands said that if one thing had to be on the chopping block for 2017 it would be the fireworks show.

“Fireworks cost a lot of money, the fireworks amount that we had for the last [few] years it ran about $6000, but they were never finished…Wamego’s show everybody talks about it – they have private fundraising, so they don’t do anything but the fireworks, but their fireworks show is supposed to be spectacular – that private donation raises about $30,000, so they can afford that,” said Sands.

Fundraising efforts by the committee are for 2017’s celebration, not the $32,000 debt inherited from 2016.

“We can’t really take $32,000 and put it off to the side…but we want everybody to know that this money that we’re going to raise now is for Sundown Salute,” said Sands noting that past debt will be worked on as a separate issue.

One idea gaining popularity is to sell bricks to line the entry ways to Heritage Park.

“We’re looking at $100 a brick [to put your name in the park], and this other idea came to me ‘you know you’re in Kansas why not make them yellow bricks’…$100 for a brick, $500 for a slab for your business,” said Sands.

The Fundraising Committee is a subcommittee of the Sundown Salute Committee formed to revitalize and sustain the Junction City Fourth of July celebration.