With the 4th of July less than two month away, new leadership at the Kailua-Kona Community Parade Association is seeking community help in funding the annual fireworks extravaganza display over Kailua Bay.
Parade co-chairs Barbara Kossow and Renee Kraft stepped down from their leadership roles after the 2023 Christmas parade.
Kossow had been working on the parade committee since 1991 when she joined the Kona Rotary Club, spending countless volunteer hours organizing the Christmas and Fourth of July parades along with the fireworks display over Kailua Bay.
Kossow and Kraft decided it was time to move on and pass the responsibility of the two parades and fireworks display to another organization.
Enter Julie Ziemelis and her new nonprofit, 365 Hawaii Island Community Fund.
“We have 7 volunteers who stepped up to lead and be responsible for the myriad of tasks of making this parade come together. Both Barb and Renee have offered to mentor this new crew as we try and put on a parade for the first time and raise $31,000 for the fireworks,” said Ziemelis.
The cost of an eight minute show over the bay is $51,612 with $20,000 coming from the county.
The fireworks display by Hawaii Explosives and Pyrotechnics Inc. has been lighting up the Kona skies from a barge approximately 600 feet offshore in celebration of Independence Day.
Ziemelis said the cost of putting on the annual fireworks display has increased because of new NOAA requirements regarding towing the barge to Kailua Bay.
“Having just gotten our momentum going, we only have 8 weeks left until the 4th of July and we need the community to help. We have created a GoFundMe (Help save the fireworks and parades in Kona) to collect “micro donations” from the community, and we are reaching out to the business community, but our deadline to pay for half of the fireworks show is coming up on the 15th of May. We don’t know if we are going to make it,” she said.
So far, Ziemelis said they have received donations for the fireworks from Kona Commons, Manini Holdings and Kailua Village Business Improvement District and challenges other businesses to step up and donate to this cherished community event.
Ziemelis said in addition to seeking funds to put on the fireworks display, the community is invited to participate in the parade. Volunteers are also needed to help build the floats.
This year’s theme is Kaulana, which means famous, celebrated and well known and the Grand Marshall is Cindi Punihaole, director of the Kahalu‘u Bay Education Center.
Ziemelis said she would like to get more high school sport teams and clubs to participate in the parade along with local businesses and community organizations.
She said Kumu Keala Ching offered his manao in what it will take to keep the parade going.
“He said if we don’t work to keep these things going, it stops people from wanting to live here any longer because there is no connection to the community,” she said. “We are going after anybody (school groups) who is a winner in anything to get more of the youth involved in this parade. I’m trying to get new energy. Lets get some new people in. This parade needs to be about the youth of this island. Kumu said if we don’t get the kids involved, they are not going to feel connected and they are going to leave.”
To learn more information, sign up for a parade entry, volunteer or donate, visit paradesinkona.com.