Rockville Centre Guild raising funds for annual Grucci fireworks show

For nearly 20 years, village residents and visitors have packed Centennial Park at Mill River to celebrate Rockville Centre’s incorporation with a musical tribute by the village’s own South Shore Symphony Orchestra, dance performances and a dazzling show of fireworks by Grucci.

Now a treasured tradition, the celebration, set for July 7, could not be held without critical support staff and services from the Village of Rockville Centre. But organizers say the public’s support is also crucial to the success of the event, and they are once again teaming up with the RVC Guild for the Arts to sell commemorative t-shirts, and collect tax-deductible donations, hoping to exceed the support that almost 500 residents and businesses provided last year.

“This year the fireworks by Grucci will again be set to music, a recording of the South Shore Symphony Orchestra. We’ll again have speakers on both sides of the river running the length of the park. We’ll attempt to videotape the fireworks, a difficult thing to do, to televise them for residents. We’re also planning to have vendors who will sell food at the event, and we’re expecting the evening to be bigger and even better than it was last year, ” said Mary Beth Kearns, chair of the Fireworks Committee.

The Saturday evening spectacular starts at 6 p.m. as families and friends gather in the park to enjoy food and entertainment. The South Shore Symphony concert, which includes patriotic standards and a performance by local dancers, begins at 7:45 and soon after dark, at about 9:15 p.m, the fireworks spectacular starts. The raindate for the event is the following evening — July 8.

For more information about the event and how you can help, visit Facebook pages for the Rockville Centre Fireworks and the RVC Guild for the Arts. Email rvcfireworks@gmail.com with questions about the $12 T-shirts commemorating the 19th annual RVC Fireworks Celebration. Available in sizes ranging from youth large to adult XX large, they will be ready for pickup on July 5 and 6 from 2 p.m. – 6 p.m. at 25 Canterbury Road. You can also send checks payable to the RVC Guild for the Arts, a 501(c) (3) tax exempt organization, to: RVC Guild for the Arts, Fireworks Celebration, P.O. Box 662, Rockville Centre, NY 11571-0662.