Isle Casino Cape Girardeau on Tuesday donated $6,000 to a fund to pay for a Fourth of July fireworks show in Cape Girardeau, pushing the donations to the $12,000 price tag needed to pay for the entire show.

A donor, who initially wanted to remain anonymous, already had contributed $6,000 hoping to entice other groups to help cover the bill. That donor was identified Tuesday as Southeast Missourian and Rust Communications chairman Gary Rust.

The casino answered Rust's call, matching his donation to meet the $12,000 necessary to cover the celebration a week after Rust's initial donation was made public.

"We heard about the ongoing efforts by the veterans' organization to raise funds for the fireworks and decided to do what we could to help bring fireworks to Cape Girardeau this year," Isle Casino interim manager Barron Fuller said in a Cape Girardeau Parks and Recreation Department news release.

The city stopped funding the Fourth of July festivities in 2009, citing budget constraints. Since then, local veterans groups have taken on the organizational work to continue the traditional fireworks show.

Organizer Rodger Brown of the USA Veterans Headquarters chapter said he felt complete joy on hearing of the casino's contribution and knowing the veterans group had enough funding to pull off the show.

"I think they want to have an image of being there for the community, and I think it's a very good image to have," Brown said.

Though attractions that accompanied the fireworks show in recent years, such as a demolition derby and live bands, aren't on the agenda this year, Brown said the 20-minute fireworks spectacle will be every bit as good as it has been the last four years, if not better.

The fireworks company, AM Pyrotechnics of Buffalo, N.Y., will provide the show for the fifth year in a row.

"AM Pyrotechnics just puts on an excellent show," Brown said. "You can't forget them. You walk away going, 'Wow.'"

Brown said the purpose of reaching out to the community for donations was to get the city's residents and businesses involved in the tradition; by buying into and owning a piece of the show.

The parks department acted as a funding mechanism by collecting donations.

"We're able to manage those funds as part of a quasi-city function so that everyone who wants to give feels confident that those funds will go directly to those fireworks," director Julia Thompson said.

Parks and recreation also will provide the venue, along with police and fire support. Those fees will be waived.

The fireworks show is scheduled for 9:15 p.m. July 4 at Arena Park, after the presentation of the Southeast Missourian's Spirit of America Award. Any further donations may go toward next year's show.

Nominations for the award may be submitted online at semissourian.com/forms/spirit. Forms also will run periodically in the print edition of the newspaper.

Award nominations may be mailed to Southeast Missourian, c/o assistant managing editor Lucas Presson, P.O. Box 699, Cape Girardeau, MO 63702.

Southeast Missourian managing editor Matt Sanders contributed to this report.

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Pertinent address:

Arena Park, Cape Girardeau, Mo.