Thanks to many donations, the show will go on

Businesses chip in for fireworks

Kent businesses and residents have more than doubled the amount of donations in the last two weeks to try to keep the community’s Fourth of July Splash fireworks show at Lake Meridian Park as big as before.

The Lake Meridian Community Association asked businesses and residents two weeks ago for additional money to help cover the rising costs of the fireworks as well as a drop in donations.

The King County Jaguars minor league football team, Dollarwise payday loan stores and the Edward Jones investment company branches in Kent are among the top contributors helping fund the annual fireworks display.

“It has been a wondrous thing,” said Michelle McDowell, president of the Lake Meridian Community Association, of the donations. “Without it, I don’t know where we would be. It’s been a big help for us.”

The neighborhood group has raised about $12,000, including an annual $6,000 contribution by the city of Kent, as of Thursday. The group hopes to get closer to a total of $14,000. The fireworks show last year cost about $16,000, one of the biggest displays at Lake Meridian.

Dollarwise, based in Federal Way with stores in Kent, Covington, Auburn and Des Moines, pledged $2,500 to this year’s show, said Ellyn Ricker, vice president of the Lake Meridian Community Association.

“They usually contribute,” Ricker said. “They contributed even more this year.”

The King County Jaguars, based in Kent, will donate a portion of their proceeds from their season-opening game at 7:30 p.m. Saturday at French Field, 10020 S.E. 256th St., to the fireworks fund. The Jaguars play the Kitsap County Bears in a North American Football League game.

“I live on the East Hill and my wife and I take our kids to the fireworks every year,” said Todd Smith, volunteer marketing director for the Jaguars. “When we saw they were in trouble, we wanted to do our part to help.”

The Jaguars will donate $5 from each $15 adult ticket sold and $2 from each $7 youth (ages 6-17) ticket, Smith said. Children ages 5 and under get in for free.

“We’d like to sell it out,” Smith said. “The more people we get the more exciting it’ll be for the game and the more money we can give to the fund.”

Smith hopes to see a crowd of up to 3,000. He said the Jaguars in previous years average about 1,000 fans per game.

“We hope to help make up for the shortfall this year and anything above that can be put in a fund for next year,” Smith said.

Edward Jones, with home offices in St. Louis and Tempe, Ariz., and several branches in Kent, has pledged $1,500.

“We’re up to about $6,000,” said Kathy Curtis, treasurer of the Lake Meridian Community Association, on Thursday.

The city of Kent, co-producer of the fireworks display, matches up to $6,000 of the amount of money raised by the Lake Meridian Community Association. The neighborhood group had raised about $3,000 as of June 6, so the recent donations doubled the amount. The amount of money from the fundraiser by the Jaguars will be determined after the game Saturday.

The city of Kent became involved in the Fourth of July activities at Lake Meridian Park in 1998, although lake residents have put on fireworks displays for years.

Residents or business owners interested in donating to the fireworks show can make checks out to the Lake Meridian Community Association and mail it to LMCA, P.O. Box 7578, Covington, WA, 98042-0044, with fireworks noted on the check.

For a tax deductible donation, write the check to the Kent Parks Foundation and mail it to the Kent Parks Foundation, P.O. Box 26, Kent, WA, 98035, with fireworks noted on the check. For more information, call the parks foundation at 253-856-5099.