Saturday night’s light show in the skies above Aldergrove will be a special treat for all the spectators at the Aldergrove Fair – and the surrounding area. But, it will be much more than that for pyrotechnician Jon Sedman.
It will be a special tribute to his boss, his mentor, his teacher, and his dad.
It will be a memorial blast off for his father, Neil Sedman, who passed away May 2 of an apparent brain aneurysm, at the age of 78.
“We’re going to blow off a little more fireworks than we normally would as a tribute to my dad,” said Jon.
Dating back to 1987, Neil first offered to discharge fireworks each year for a special event at his children’s elementary school.
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Well, what started as a hobby soon grew into a family business. And under the umbrella of Celebration Fireworks, Neil, his wife, Gwen, and their kids, Jon and Jennifer, have coordinated fireworks for literally thousands of shows through the years – everything from festivals and fairs to weddings and bar mitzvahs, from ball games and car races to concerts and birthdays.
In the past two weeks alone, Celebration Fireworks has coordinated at least 20 pyrotechnic shows – Canada Day being one of the busiest periods of the year for the Surrey-based company.
Now, the Sedman family is gearing up to put on quite the show at the Aldergrove Fair.
For the first time in eight years, the fair will feature a fireworks display on Saturday, July 16, starting at 10:20 p.m., confirmed fair president Robin McIntosh.
“So many residents in Aldergrove have asked us over the past seven years, ‘When are the fireworks returning?’ I am proud to say ‘Now!’” McIntosh said.
Spectators can expect the show to last about 12 minutes or so, Jon noting it takes about four to five hours of set up for a show of this duration. And cleanup after takes another few hours, at least.
“It will be like the stuff you see for the Symphony of Fire (later renamed Celebration of Lights), but on a lot smaller scale,” he said, confident it will be a show of which his father would be proud.
“As most would agree, fireworks is a special type of event full of magic, anticipation, and awe. It brings out smiles from every one of all ages,” McIntosh said.
It’s just one of the special features of this year’s Aldergrove Fair, which runs July 14 to 17.
For more details, people can visit the fair website.
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