Missing Thunder — fireworks absent this year in Holmes County
One of the biggest functions that will be missed with the absence of Thunder Over Holmes County in Millersburg will be the abundance of kids’ activities. The kids’ games, hosted by Skyview Ranch, are wildly popular with families visiting the Fourth of July celebration each year.
For the past number of years, thousands of people have gathered in Historic Downtown Millersburg to celebrate Independence Day, where Thunder Over Holmes County has brought together many people to watch fireworks, explore the downtown area, enjoy the many different activities and watch their children frolic in the game area that has become such a highlight for the event.
The skies will be silent this year with the cancellation of the event, but the spirit of celebration will go on.
Historic Downtown Millersburg executive director Judy Lamp said while Thunder Over Holmes County is canceled, it doesn’t mean the Fourth of July won’t still go on.
“This was a very difficult decision for the board to make, but at the time there wasn’t any other way they could go with the decision. They simply didn’t have a choice because the decision had to be made so far ahead of time and we were right in the middle of the pandemic when everything was shut down,” Lamp said.
While this Holmes County tradition will be on hiatus for 2020, Lamp said people need to take the joy of the Millersburg celebration and create that same feeling at home with a smaller group of family and friends.
“Someone said to me, ‘I can’t believe you’re taking away the Fourth of July.’ It isn’t taking away the Fourth of July,” Lamp said. “People will find plenty of ways to celebrate in their own ways this year. Celebrations go on whether we have Thunder Over Holmes County or not. People can still have backyard barbecues, play games and have get-togethers that will be a lot of fun. It doesn’t stop the celebration. It is just going to be this part of the celebration will be missing this year, which hurt to have to make that choice, but there was just no way possible for us to in good conscious move forward with it this year.”
Lamp said the timing of the coronavirus pandemic played a big role in the decision. She said the board schedules the fireworks for the event two months ahead of time, and they simply could not make that kind of investment not knowing what the future would hold.
Not only were there financial decisions involved, there were health and safety issues at stake as well. Lamp said having experienced plenty of Thunder Over Holmes County events prior to this one, she and the board understood people were going to gather together in groups both big and small should the event take place, and that was something they felt they couldn’t afford to risk at the time the decision was made.
“We were debating about putting on an event that encourages groups to congregate during a time when people shouldn’t be together,” Lamp said. “If we have the event, there is no way to stop that from happening, so that was a big factor in making the decision to cancel.”
Lamp said what made the decision even harder was that this year’s event would have taken place on July 4, something that doesn’t happen all that often.
“Of all the years to cancel, we had to cancel on the year that it would have actually fallen on July 4,” Lamp said. “That was unfortunate because we know how many people really look forward to celebrating Independence Day at Thunder Over Holmes County.”
As for the economic impact missing the event might have, Lamp said Thunder Over Holmes County has never been about making money; it has been about providing an avenue for the people of Holmes County to celebrate together.
“It’s never been a money-maker,” Lamp said. “That was never the goal. This is the one event we do that is done purely for the benefit of the community. It is a free event, and the goal was to give back to the community in fun and exciting ways that families can enjoy. That kids’ area with all of the games and bounce houses is so much fun, and it has always been packed with kids and lots of laughter. That’s what it is for: to give back to the community. Regardless of a family’s economic standing, they could come to town and have a great day.”
While fireworks won’t be booming over Millersburg on July 4, the show will go on at Lake Buckhorn, so people may want to keep an eye on the night sky south of Millersburg if they want to see some fireworks.
Buckhorn is able to do fireworks because people can social distance at their homes or on their boats.