I have been a part of the Carnation Fourth of July Committee for 14 years and have been chairperson for the past six years. The other day I was asked, “Who puts on this event? And how much does it cost?”
The speaker was surprised to find out that this is not a city event and they were equally surprised at the $26,000 price tag to put it all on. I was asked, “Where do I get the money?” This is not the first time I have been asked this question, so I began to think about how many people don’t know how this event is put on.
There are many people to thank. Without their time or money, this event would not be able to happen.
This event could not function without its volunteer event chairpersons: Nicole Pitts, 5K Fun Run; Debbie Green, vendors; John Petree, Hot Rods & Harleys; Matt Coltom, 3-on-3 Basketball; Collienne Becker, facilities, volunteer coordinator & PR; I handle the parade, entertainment and chair the event. The other volunteers are Suzanne Maxon, treasurer; Theresa Tenney, secretary; Alan Sinsel, King County Parks, the City of Carnation and the Carnation/Duvall Police Department. As a group, we work on this event for six months, while I work on it year round. The Fourth of July Committee is a non-profit organization and we work independently from the city of Carnation, but we are in partnership with both the city and King County.
We rely heavily on donations. We are able to put on this event due to our local businesses, who donate money or other in-kind donations. We can’t thank them enough for coming through for us, year after year: Business Telecom Products, Zeigler Company, Tolt Laundry, Carnation Storage, Sno-Falls Credit Union, Remlinger Farms, Ixtapa, Carnation Golf Course, Mom’s Club, Costco, Whirlwind Services, Thrive, Mosaic Catering, Cooper & Johnson, Carnation Christian Pre-School, Footzone, Hopelink, Cascade Community Theatre, City of Duvall, Itchy Dog Productions, Schwartz Brothers, Mr. Ed’s, Bank of America, Tremaine Investments and Tanner Electric. New contributors this year were Starbucks of Carnation and Jackson’s Shell Station, who donated cold beverages for the 3-on-3 basketball tournament participants. Carnation and Duvall Edward Jones offices, Trivent Financial, Mosaic Catering and Itchydog Productions gave sponsorship money to the 3-on-3 basketball tournament.
For the first time ever, this year’s Hot Rods & Harleys Show had a sponsor, Don Lovett, owner of Pete’s Club & Grill. Hot Rods & Harleys had other donations and prizes from L.J. Toy, Snap on Tools, Valley Mailbox, Sandi’s Espresso, Speedway Chevrolet, Duvall True Value Hardware, Duvall Auto Parts, Sound Harley Davidson, Toyota of Kirkland, Sno-Country Ford, Rairdon’s Dodge Jeep Chrysler. It was a true blessing to have Pete’s Club & Grill as our sponsor this year so that we could continue to bring you Hot Rods & Harleys. Without all of the donations, sponsorship and new committee volunteers John and Gail Petree putting it all together this year, Hot Rods & Harleys was in jeopardy of not happening.
Another first this year was having sponsorship for the fireworks. With sponsorship money from The American Legion and Lazy K’s, our largest sponsor to date for the fireworks, we were able to put on a bigger and better firework show for all who attended.
The final way we make money is by the people participating in the events including the 5K run, 3-on-3 basketball, Hot Rods & Harleys, the parade and the vendor village booths. Without these, we could not bring you your Fourth of July event.
There are a lot of extra expenses, from waste management, restrooms, radios and entertainment to parks costs, trophies and awards. The cost would be much higher if the city of Carnation didn’t give their gracious donation to pay for the police protection, as well as all the work done by the city staff.
Without the support of all of these contributors, this event could not take place. We appreciate everyone in city limits for putting up with road closures and detour paths. Thanks to the folks on West Morrison who are always gracious when it comes to staging the parade in front of their homes. The committee would also like to thank Carnation Golf Course for taking on the beer garden in the park this year—we know this is a huge endeavor.
Lastly, the committee members would like to thank our families. All of our families participate in some way to make this event happen.
The Fourth of July Committee appreciates everyone coming out year after year to support this event. If you would like to help with this event in 2011 by volunteering or by donating, please visit www.carnation4th.org.
See you July 4, 2011.
Kim Lisk,
Chairperson
