4th of July Crescenta Valley Fireworks Celebration

The 13th annual Crescenta Valley Fireworks Celebration was a spectacular community event to celebrate amongst friends and family for Independence day.  Local members of La Crescenta as well as others from various areas joined together to watch the color-filled sky. Attendees were able to enter the gates at 4 pm, while the firework show began at 9 pm.  

Though it was a five-hour wait for the main event, entertainment was thoroughly available; inflatable bouncy houses, booth games, live music, and food trucks were scattered around the field for all ages to enjoy.  A major aspect of spending July 4th at CV was the social interactions on the field. The attendees were able to set up blankets or chairs ahead of the fireworks show, and spend their time on the grass.

This holiday occasion would not have been possible without the volunteers.  Adults and teens had the opportunity to help create an unforgettable night. Key Clubbers from CV and other high schools such as Eagle Rock and Los Angeles helped set up chairs, tables and fences at 10 am before the festivities.  Volunteers were able to stay after their shift to watch the fireworks.  

Yvalisse Ganzon, a Key Club volunteer, was among those to set up for two hours, and spoke about her prior experience on the firework show throughout the years.  “Personally I like spending my 4th of July at CV because there’s nothing like it,” she stated. “Going to CV makes you feel like you’re surrounded by family. It’s like one huge neighborhood party that gives you a sense of home and comfort.”  

Yvalisse is one of many to spend year after year at the Crescenta Valley Firework show.  The strong sense of community at CV is unparalleled to any other show. Ganzon continued, “the fireworks itself are genuinely incomparable to anything else. Sitting on a picnic blanket looking up at the colorfully lit up sky beside my family is why I love spending 4th of July at CV.”

Once the fireworks began, the deafening sounds of the tremendous fireworks silenced everyone, except for the patriotic music and the occasional “wow” from the crowd. Staring up from the blankets to the extremely magnificent fireworks was extraordinary.  Watching the fireworks from a distance was clearly unmatched to watching the intense and bright fireworks up close at CV.  

The show was thunderous, as fireworks covered the sky, and little kids reached their hands as if to touch them.  After the finale, the sky became clear once more, and the applause from everyone became the new deafening sound, almost as loud as the fireworks.  Spending their Independence Day together, the Crescenta Valley community shared this memorable night for another year, excited for the next.

Hannah Sung, Grade 10

Crescenta Valley High School