Rockford’s 60th Fourth of July fireworks show will be its biggest ever
By Kevin Haas
Rock River Current
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ROCKFORD — The nonprofit group that puts on the city’s annual Fourth of July fireworks display will celebrate its 60th year by putting on its biggest fireworks show in its six-decade history.
The Rockford Fourth of July Civic Committee pumped an additional $15,000 into its pyrotechnics budget this year to make the 30-minute anniversary show one for the record books. The fireworks show costs the nonprofit about $75,000 with the total event coming in at about $95,000. It’s funded entirely by donations with no tax dollars used.
“We knew it had to be big,” said Ted O’Donnell, who leads the committee’s team of volunteers with his cousin, Tom Luepkes. “We want to give our community a humongous show, and what better than to do it on our 60th.”
Related: Your guide to Fourth of July fireworks and events in the Rockford region
The show blasts off at 9:30 p.m. Thursday across from Davis Park with views from anywhere downtown and beyond. The best seats are considered to be in Davis Park, 320 S. Wyman St., where the display is synced to patriotic music from B103 Rockford. You can also tune in to 103.1 to hear the skyconcert.
The parade begins at 4:40 p.m. with a motorcycle display followed by Jeeps before the main patriotic parade steps off at 5 p.m. through Midtown and downtown.
The nonprofit hires Indiana-based Pyrotecnico, the largest fireworks show designer in North America, to handle the display. Pyrotecnico has handled fireworks for everything from the Super Bowl to Beyonce’s world tour and other major events.
“It’s fireworks from all over the world that will be featured, and a third of those have never even been seen in the Midwest before,” O’Donnell said. “It’s exciting because we were always the guinea pig for this company, and they love showcasing brand new pyro for our show.”
There are roughly 7,000 shells expected to be used in the show, although a final count won’t be tallied until setup time, O’Donnell said. He said you’ll never see the same blast repeated in the show after a song is complete.
“You’ll never see the shells from one song into another song. They’re never repeated,” he said. “It’s so unique how they do it. It just shows how much inventory that we have in this show.”
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The display is funded entirely by donations made during the Fourth of July and the annual Festival of Lights winter holiday display. O’Donnell said a successful year with sponsors and donations at Festival of Lights, which had record attendance last year, helped the committee pay for the increased spending on pyrotechnics.
“Without the community, this event doesn’t happen anymore,” he said. “That’s why you have seen so many firework cancellations in a 120-mile radius around us, because people are just like, look we can’t even raise $5,000, so why do it.
“Tom and I will never cancel the fireworks. We don’t care if we have to give a small show, we’ll still do it to honor our community and our country.”
Joe Marino, O’Donnell’s uncle, was a Navy veteran who founded the Rockford Fourth of July Civic Committee in 1963 at the request of then-mayor Ben Schleicher. The committee has paid for and put on the fireworks display every year since, with the exception of a hiatus in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Marino died Nov. 21, 2018, about eight years after a statue was put up at State and Water streets in downtown Rockford to honor him for his decades of contributions.
O’Donnell said his uncle always wanted to make shows bigger and better each year, and he said Marino always hoped to fund a show like the one coming this year.
“We had to do bigger so they could try to get to the heavens, closer to Uncle Joe,” O’Donnell said.
How to help
The Fourth of July fireworks display is funded entirely by donations and sponsorships. No taxpayer money is used.
Online: You can donate online here.
By check: Mail to: Rockford 4th of July Civic Committee, 728 N. Prospect St., Suite 107, Rockford IL, 61107
More info: 4thandlights.com
Know before you go
When: Parade begins at 4:40 p.m.; fireworks show at 9:30 p.m. Thursday, July 4
Where: Davis Park, 320 S. Wyman St., is considered a prime viewing area and will feature food trucks and entertainment. A $5 donation is suggested to get into Davis Park.
Complete schedule of events: 4thandlights.com
This article is by Kevin Haas. Email him at khaas@rockrivercurrent.com or follow him on X at @KevinMHaas or Instagram @thekevinhaas and Threads @thekevinhaas
