Dan King camped out on a blanket to see the Fireworks on the Water for the first time Saturday, and he knew he was in the right place.
“I don”t make enough effort to do enough like this,” said King, 56, an hour before the fireworks were set to go off. He was looking forward to the show, but being around people he didn”t know was a higher priority.
Events like Fireworks on the Water “bring the community together” and help everyone unite and move forward, said King, of Cliftonville.
Sonic Johnson, director of public affairs for the Columbus Air Force Base, estimated King was among 9,000 people who had shown up for the events at the Stennis Lock and Dam, which included music by the band Come On Go With Us, inflatable jumpers and face painting.
Families were scattered everywhere around the circumference of the Lock and Dam, on blankets or in lawn chairs. Children walked about the food court as if they had important things to do. Snow cones, funnel cakes and hamburgers abounded.
Boats on the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway were lit up, creating sparkles across the water before the fireworks began.
Midway through the evening, CAFB Col. Roger Watkins took the microphone and congratulated the crowd and wished it a happy birthday.
“We have a great evening (ahead), and we get to celebrate,” he said
Watkins reminded the crowd to remember the 47 airmen from the base who were deployed, “preserving the freedom that we”re celebrating tonight.”
David Berg, 51, rocked in a chair he”d brought, in the minutes before the fireworks began. He said he”d come to “unite with the community and get out of my house.” He was anxious to see the show to come.
Danny Cameron, 63, of Ethelsville, Ala., believed a celebration such as the one he was attending was “necessary.”
Many problems are plaguing the nation — unemployment, failing banks and wages holding still, among others, he noted.
“I think today people came to see the fireworks because we need to see ”em,” he said. “We need to remember what it”s all about.”
The Dispatch Editorial Board is made up of publisher Peter Imes, columnist Slim Smith, managing editor Zack Plair and senior newsroom staff.
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