The 47th president and a fifth-generation company are marking the nation’s 250th birthday with a history-making program at the iconic South Dakota sculptures.
KEYSTONE, S.D.—A day before America’s 250th Independence Day, Mount Rushmore will serve as the majestic backdrop for a speech from President Donald Trump—capped by a show-stopping $700,000 fireworks display.
Trump and world-renowned fireworks creators, Pyro Spectaculars Inc., are both returning to the famous South Dakota landmark for a reprise of Trump’s 2020 visit.
At that time, the California fireworks company lit up the night sky after Trump became the nation’s fifth president to deliver a speech at the iconic national memorial, following presidents Calvin Coolidge, Franklin D. Roosevelt, George H.W. Bush, and George W. Bush.
This time around, as Trump headlines a program honoring the nation’s semiquincentennial, he is set to become the sole U.S. president to give two Rushmore speeches. The July 3 Rushmore speech will serve as a prelude to Trump’s remarks at the grand July 4 celebration in the nation’s capital.
At Rushmore, Pyro Spectaculars promises to unveil “unique color-changing and strobe effects never before presented in the USA,” its proposal for the show says.
The company, run by the Souza family for five generations, has repeatedly won some of America’s most coveted fireworks contracts.
A half-century ago, when America marked its bicentennial in 1976, the Souzas lit up the New York and Boston harbors.
A decade later, Pyro Spectaculars commemorated the Statue of Liberty’s 100th anniversary.
The company has also been entrusted to add pizzazz to several Olympic Games, Los Angeles Dodgers games, and Macy’s July 4 and Thanksgiving events in New York City.
By Janice Hisle
