The reasons for not having fireworks

By Roger "Zig" Ziegler

U.S.A. Veterans, a veterans group that was founded in Cape Girardeau and whose headquarters and charter chapter's (Trail of Tears Chapter) home is at 519 Good Hope (once known as Ed's Bar and more recently the Pink Squirrel) has organized Cape Girardeau's annual July 4 celebration for the past four years.

We started doing this when the city could no longer afford to do so. We did this because we are very proud to be a part of Cape and hope that Cape will always be proud of us.

In our pursuit of a place to call home, we found out that the Pink Squirrel was closing its doors and decided to buy the property.

The proprietor for many years was Jayne Brown, and she loved us and believed in us enough to allow us to meet in her establishment for several years.

When the old bar came back up for sale, we felt that making it our home was the right thing to do. Unfortunately, the bar had fallen into a state of disrepair over the years and a whole lot of extra money had to be spent repairing the wiring, the walls and many of the coolers and other bar fixtures. We are still trying to make enough money to have the roof repaired, which is sorely needed.

All of this money was the money that we were counting on to finish paying for last year's July 4 and be the seed money for this year's celebration. None of last year's July 4 money was spent on buying the building. We secured a loan for that, which is where the bar and grill's income is being spent.

To put on the July 4 activities, the organization spends $10,000 on fireworks alone. For our $10,000, the community is given a show that would normally be worth $50,000 or better. If you have ever been to one of the shows, you know that it is.

We also spend another $1,137 on renting Arena Park, which we still owe some from last year. It also costs $1,225 for portable toilets. We still owe for those also. There is another $5,000 to put on the Demolition Derby and almost $3,000 for the sound system and staging that is required to put on an event of this size. Other things that we have to pay for are ambulance on standby, water usage and utilities, backhoe and the fuel it uses, and advertising, which the Southeast Missourian and KGMO have given us a great deal on. In all, it costs us nearly $40,000 to pay for all the services and entertainment that we provide to the community.

Those of you who come to our July 4 celebration also know that the Southeast Missourian gives out its Spirit of America Award every year before the Demolition Derby.

With all of the bills that we still owe and the repairs that still need to be made at the bar and grill, we, as a group, do not see how we can possibly afford to put the event on this year. We do want to thank our past contributors, you know who you are, for all that they have done for us in the past.

If you would like to get in touch with us you can reach us at U.S.A. Veterans Trail of Tears Bar and Grill, 519 Good Hope St., Cape Girardeau MO 63703, or call us at 334-7940.

With our recent election of new officers, we hope to take U.S.A. Veterans in a better direction in the near future.

Roger "Zig" Ziegler is the Commander for U.S.A. Veterans.