An Island institution responsible for giving a bang to the season is having a hard time.
The Oak Bluffs Firemen’s Civic Association, which collects contributions each year to cover the cost for the August fireworks over Ocean Park, is this summer struggling to raise enough money.
“It is getting harder and harder,” said Ken Davey, president of the association.
This year’s fireworks are scheduled to take place on Saturday, August 23.
In the annals of thankless jobs on the Vineyard, the Oak Bluffs Firemen’s Civic Association’s effort to organize the annual fireworks display — a staple of summer on the Vineyard for over three decades — ranks right up there with moped dealer and traffic cop.
Did you know fireworks date back to seventh century China when they were used to scare away evil spirits? But that was just for the wealthy. The masses didn’t get their boom-boom on until the 14th century, thanks to the Ming dynasty’s populist embrace. Fast-forward to today and a beloved dynasty of another sort, the Oak Bluffs Fire Department, which is hosting its annual fireworks blastoff at Ocean Park in Oak Bluffs.
For the first time in several years, Island residents looking to welcome the New Year with dancing, champagne and yes, fireworks, need look no further than Edgartown. Hoping to usher in a new tradition along with 2012, the Harbor View Hotel will sponsor a fireworks show over the Edgartown harbor, with attendees at the hotel’s New Year’s Eve party having a prime view of the display.
The Oak Bluffs fireworks display, a cornerstone of Island summer every August, will be cancelled next year unless the town finds a way to continue the show, the selectmen said on Tuesday night.
Selectmen said the firemen’s association, which organizes and raises the money each year for the huge fireworks display over Ocean Park, had taken a vote on Sunday to discontinue the show next summer.
Selectman and board chairman Kathy Burton vowed that her board would “fix” the situation.
The Oak Bluffs fireworks display, a cornerstone of Island summer every August, will be cancelled next year unless the town finds a way to continue the show after the town Firemen’s Civic Association voted to end their sponsorship of the event on Sunday.
A press statement released after the vote by civic association president James T. Morse and his fellow officers explained the decision while acknowledging the fireworks’ rich Island legacy.
The annual fireworks display in Oak Bluffs will continue this August, thanks to a substantial donation from the cable network Black Entertainment Television (BET).
The future of the long-standing Ocean Park show was called into question last October when the Oak Bluffs Firemen’s Civic Association, the sponsor of the event, said it could no longer bear the costs of the show.
