Shafter sky lit up at July 3 celebration

The Shafter Chamber of Commerce held its annual July 3 Fireworks Celebration last Wedensday, lighting up the night sky with a spectacular show.

The event was much more than a fireworks show, with a lot of fun things for the kids to do while waiting for the sun to go down. There was plenty of food at the event, with tacos and burritos, as well as fair food such as funnel cakes and corn dogs. There was also the mainstay kettle corn, and a variety of flavors of shaved ices, cooling the crowd off with the triple digit temperatures.

There is no cost for the event, just to get into the grounds of the Shafter Recreation Department, but there was a charge this year for the parking lots at the Recreation District Offices. Two of the three lots were sold out, earning the Chamber of Commerce about $1,300 to go toward the cost of the event.

Even with that income, according to Adrian Montevais of the chamber, they will still likely come up short of raising enough money to cover the cost of the event.

Montevais had said that the event costs around $30,000 to put on. As of the night of the event, he said they were about $2,000 short of achieving that goal.

"Hopefully, we will make it up with the vendors," said Montevais.

As in the past, the fireworks show was filled with colors, booms, and explosions that could be seen for miles.

The event also attracted the Shafter Minter Field Air Museum, who brought their yellow Follow-Me Jeep, and their popular LOACH helicopter, as well as an antique fire engine. Ronald Pierce of the museum said that a lot of kids got their pictures taken while sitting in the cockpit, or the drivers seat of the different vehicles. "I love doing events like this, seeing the smiles on the kids' faces," Pierce said.

To keep the kids busy while waiting for sunset, there were several inflatables, with giant slides and bounce houses, as well as booths selling light-up toys and gadgets.

New this year was a suds machine, allowing the young and old alike to get sprayed with foam, cooling off and getting really clean at the same time.

As the sun went down, the fireworks show began, shooting the shells high in the air, filling the sky with an array of colors.

After the rousing finale, the crowd applauded the efforts of the organizers, and the kids even traded some sweat for candy, as they helped clean the trash off of the grounds for some free candy, leaving the grounds as clean as when they entered them.

According to Montevais, the event again was a success, even if it ends up forcing the chamber, to use part of their reserve funds for this year's event.

It is still one of the most popular events in the county, with people coming from all over to catch the show.

"We have been coming here for a few years now," said Thomas Berrigan, who came to the event with his son and grandchildren. "We live in Bakersfield, but we love coming here. We were invited by a couple of friends a few years ago, and we have been coming ever since. It is so much fun."