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McDonald’s Saipan donates $1,000 for LibDay fireworks
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Posted on Jul 01 2021
Special assistant to the mayor Henry Hofschneider, third from left; Saipan Mayor David M. Apatang, sixth from left; Mable Glenn, fourth from right, executive assistant to the president for McDonald’s of Guam and Saipan; and McDonald’s staff share a photo with the $1,000 check given to the Office of the Mayor during a brief turnover at the McDonald’s office conference room on Wednesday. (Joshua Santos)
McDonald’s Saipan donated $1,000 to the Office of the Mayor yesterday, to be used to buy fireworks for this year’s Liberation Day festivities on Sunday, July 4, at the Garapan Fishing Base.
Saipan Mayor David M. Apatang and his special assistant, Henry Hofschneider, received the check donation at the McDonald’s main office in Dandan.
Mable Glenn, executive assistant to the president for McDonald’s of Guam and Saipan, said that McDonald’s is more than happy to support the Office of the Mayor in its efforts to hold July 4 festivities this year, and commended the Office of the Mayor for always putting together meaningful community events.
The Liberation Day festivities, usually one of the more grandiose occasions in the CNMI, is being “downscaled” this year to just a fireworks display—sans the parade and monthlong Liberation Day festival—due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Apatang expressed hope that next year’s July 4 celebration will be bigger, but if the COVID-19 pandemic is still an issue in 2022, Apatang will downscale festivities again.
“I don’t want to jeopardize our community just for a one-day celebration. I prefer that we hold on until everything is clear so that everybody can come out and enjoy with nobody getting sick,” said Apatang.
The 15- to 20-minute fireworks display on Sunday at the Garapan Fishing Base will begin at 8pm. The Office of the Mayor asks that spectators stay in their cars, and will have Department of Public Safety personnel to maintain traffic and crowd control as well as to ensure compliance with COVID-19 safety guidelines.
The Garapan Fishing Base pier itself will be closed to the public from July 2 to July 5 to allow a pyrotechnics team enough time to set up, ensure the fireworks will perform and be up to safety standards, and remove the pyrotechnics systems after July 4.
Finally, the Office of the Mayor asks boaters to not use Garapan Fishing Base’s launching ramp from 8pm to 11pm on July 4.
