The sky over Lawrence Township will be awash in the rockets’ red, white and blue glare as Lawrence Township hosts its annual Fourth of July celebration on July 5 at the Rider University campus.
By Lea Kahn, Staff Writer
The sky over Lawrence Township will be awash in the rockets’ red, white and blue glare as Lawrence Township hosts its annual Fourth of July celebration on July 5 at the Rider University campus.
The fireworks display, sponsored by the Lawrence Township Recreation Department, will begin around 9:45 p.m., and last about 20 minutes. The rain date is July 6.
Steven Groeger, the township’s superintendent of recreation, recommends making the best of the summer night by coming early, bringing the family, a blanket or lawn chairs, and perhaps a picnic supper.
For those who choose not to bring their own food, there will be refreshments for sale, Mr. Groeger said.
With or without food, however, all can enjoy the live music provided by Kindred Spirits, which plays a range of music for every taste, he said. The music will begin around 7:30 p.m.
Mr. Groeger promised that the fireworks show would be bigger than ever, thanks to fundraising efforts spearheaded by the Recreation Department. He said the township typically spends about $10,000 on the shells, but because of an especially successful fundraising campaign, $17,000 will be spent on the show this year.
”We would like to see the size of the show continue to go up,” Mr. Groeger said. “The hope is that this year’s show will be bigger than last year’s, and that next year’s show will be bigger than this one.”
Lawrence Township does not fund the fireworks show through the municipal budget, Mr. Groeger said. The township stopped funding the fireworks show in 2010 because of budget concerns, leaving the skies dark that year.
And that’s when the private fundraising effort — coordinated by the Recreation Department — was launched to pay for the fireworks, which have been held on the Rider University campus since the 1990s.
The fundraising efforts for the 2014 fireworks show will begin even before the last shell has been fired this year. Donations will be accepted at this year’s show. The goal is to get a jumpstart on fundraising for 2014, Mr. Groeger said.