KAILUA-KONA — Come for the parade, stay for the fireworks.
That’s the plan, so long as the last $6,000 needed to put on next Monday’s $35,500 Fireworks Extravaganza over Kailua Bay and Kailua-Kona Independence Day Parade can be raised this week, say Kailua-Kona Community Parade Association organizers.
So far, the all-volunteer force has raised more than $29,000 needed to put on the parade and show, and that includes the $10,000 from the Hawaii County fireworks permit fees fund, said association chairman Cliff Kopp. The 10-minute fireworks show will be put on by Hawaii Explosives and Pyrotechnics Inc. from a barge in Kailua Bay starting at 8 p.m.
Anyone can contribute to the show from individuals and families to businesses and nonprofits. And it’s easy. You can do it online at www.paradesinkona.com. For a $10 donation you can be a “Sparkling” sponsor, and for a donation of $3,000 you’re “Star Spangled.”
“Community parades and fireworks are an integral part of celebrating Independence Day across the United States. It’s a time where our community comes together to celebrate freedom. It’s just something we do,” said Barbara Kossow, who oversees sponsorships for the parade and fireworks show.
And, any amount raised over what’s needed this year will go toward next year’s Fourth of July festivities, Kopp said.
The 21st annual Kailua-Kona Independence Day Parade will get underway at 6 p.m. starting at the Kekuaokalani Gymnasium off Kuakini Highway. It will proceed south on the highway, to Palani Road, to Alii Drive, and then south on Alii Drive to Walua Road just past Coconut Grove Marketplace. Road closures will be in effect during the festivities. Nine announcer stations will be set up throughout the 1.2-mile parade route.
This year’s parade theme is “Kona’s got Spirit!” Along with musical entries and floats of all kinds, there will be multiple color guards and numerous members of our armed services as part of the parade, including the VFW, American Legion, Pohakuloa Training Area, Kona Vet Center, Disabled American Veterans, and others. Organizers expect more than 60 entrants.
The Grand Marshals for the 2016 parade will feature and honor Kona’s Vietnam War veterans and their families, as part of the 50th anniversary of this era in our nation’s history. The unit, which is sponsored by the military spouses of Vietnam War veterans, will also feature a canine detail in honor of the Military War Dogs, our four-legged friends, who served alongside soldiers in Vietnam.
Info/contribute: www.paradesinkona.com. Not computer savvy? Call Kossow at 938-0806.