Levon Vojtkofsky, a senior at Snider High School, wants to be an artist some day. It’s a big dream, he knows, but Sunday he felt hopeful he could make it happen.A big bang for your buck is being offered to people and businesses who donate to the largest fireworks display in northeast Indiana.
The Fort Wayne Newspapers Three Rivers Festival is about $2,000 short of the money needed to pay for the sizzling display that marks the festival’s end.
To help the festival reach its mark, the Fort Wayne Downtown Improvement District has included a link on its Web site so people can make donations both large and small through a PayPal account, according to Rich Davis, the district’s president.
In addition to providing the link, the Downtown Improvement District donated $5,000 for the fireworks display, as did the Fort Wayne TinCaps, Davis said.
“We’re very pleased that they’ve stepped up,” Davis said about the TinCaps’ donation.
Although the Downtown Improvement District’s strategic mission is to focus on supporting new events with growth potential, Davis said recent reports about festivals struggling because of decreased sponsorships offered an opportunity to support an event that draws thousands to the city’s downtown.
“We really thought it was time to say thanks to the Three Rivers Festival and to show our appreciation and to do what we could,” Davis said.
Including in-kind sponsorships, about $24,000 has been raised for the fireworks, according to Mayumi Carboni, the festival’s executive director.
The business community has reached out for help with this event because it is popular among festival-goers, Carboni said.
Although both Carboni and Davis are optimistic that needed donations will be made, Carboni said if donations fall short, the festival will use some of its profits from this year’s events to cover the cost.
Davis said the $5,000 donations weren’t in the budgets of either the Downtown Improvement District or the TinCaps.
“This is a stretch for all of us,” Davis said.
