The people of Wagga have spoken – they think Skyworks was a hit, and now they’re calling on council to make it a permanent fixture for New Year’s Eve.
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As the clock ticked over to 2018, people flocked to social media to congratulate the organisers on a fantastic event:
“One of the best events Wagga has had,” said one resident, while others compared the fireworks display to Sydney Harbour’s.
Mayor Greg Conkey was equally as impressed; he said the council would be open to supporting Skyworks again, but no plans had been confirmed.
“I think it’s a great celebration of new year, and I would certainly support us continuing to fund something along these lines in future years,” Councillor Conkey said.
“The fireworks organisers said they'd go for 20 minutes, and they went for 21 – now that's longer than Sydney and Melbourne and Brisbane – that’s impressive.”
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Spearheading the Skyworks spectacular was Daniel Martelozzo, principal dealer of the Thomas Bros Toyota Dealership.
“We'd like it to become a permant fixture as well – and the general public have certainly hopped on board – but we'd like to do it even bigger and better next year,” Mr Martelozzo said.
“For example, we had 10 superheroes handing out stuff to the kids, and at one point kids were surrounding us five or six deep,” he said.
“Next year, we'd like to double or triple the number of superheroes and give away even more free stuff to the kids.”
While it was an evening filled with fun for the whole family, an onslaught of spectacular entertainment, and a fireworks display that left everyone stunned, Mr Martelozzo said one of the best things about Skyworks was the money they were able to raise for charity.
“Ultimately, were doing this to raise funds for Country Hope – and we're pretty happy with the way the day went for them,” he said.
Country Hope are a Wagga-based charity that provides financial and emotional support to children with life-threatening illnesses and their families.
Taking on 27 new families in 2017 meant money was getting tight for Country Hope, however, the day-long raffle during Skyworks was able to provide them with a boost of $3500.
A dozen sick children and their siblings were also treated to helicopter rides around Lake Albert during the day.