Typically, the goal of a New Year’s Eve fireworks show is to celebrate the year that is passing as we enter into a fresh, new year of hope and possibility. According to the organizer of the Homer New Year’s Eve Fireworks Fantastical, the goal is to put the woeful 2020 out of its misery with a huge flush, ushering in 2021 with a celebratory stream of fire in the sky.
The event was crowdfunded on social media, but met all of its funding goals, so no additional funding is being accepted. Instead, the organizers want people across the peninsula to head to Homer to enjoy the fireworks show as safely as possible.
Aaron Weisser, one of the organizers, told KSRM News that there are a number of viewing options to get out and enjoy the show, but that the options to view from a vehicle may be first-come, first-serve: “The display is happening adjacent to Mariner Park on the Homer Spit, so we actually set up on the gravel bar between Mariner Park and what’s known as the sea wall in Homer. So, it’s a little bit of a no-man’s-land, so we can get away from the crowd a little bit. We are going to park vehicles in Mariner Park, facing the show, so the first 150 to 175 vehicles that we get, that show up at the park, will be able to park facing the show so, if they want to, they can watch from inside their vehicle.”
He added: “The last couple of years, people have parked along Homer Spit Road and down along the base of the Spit by the lighthouse village, so there are a number of places [to park]. A lot of people watch from the hillside in their own homes, so there is actually a lot of different viewing options.”
He added that there is a contingency plan in case the show needs to be delayed due to weather, but current forecasts make that possibility appear less-and-less likely. Thursday’s forecast looks like it will be slightly cloudy with only light winds.
The show will take place at 8:00 p.m. on Thursday at Mariner Park in Homer. Weisser reminded KSRM that this celebration has a little more to celebrate than most years: “Well, the funny thing is that a lot of times, a New Year celebration is couched in the terminology of welcoming a new year. I think, this year, it’s more about saying goodbye to the last year! [laughs] I mean, we’re glad for the new year, but we’re also ready to move on.”
