IDAHO GOES DOWN In order to finance some of its programming, a local youth club is currently selling pyrotechnics as part of its annual fundraiser.
Since its founding in 2018, Community adolescents in Action has expanded to include a Safety, Prevention, and Resource Center as well as the LIV Teen Center, in addition to its original mission of keeping local adolescents drug-free. The public can use these services for free.
The Liv Teen Center, named for Olivia Liv Johnson, who died in a car accident, offers kids a place to hang out after school, food, tutoring, and other enrichment activities, according to CYA’s website. The goal of SPARC is to keep young people out of the juvenile justice and child welfare systems.
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CYA has been selling fireworks for the past eight years.
Marco Erickson, R-Idaho Falls, who is the program director, told EastIdahoNews.com that the money earned stays in the community and supports CYA and its other programs, which serve local adolescents.
Although CYA and its other initiatives receive grant funding to maintain the lights, they also use the proceeds from the fireworks stand to fund other initiatives.
For instance, food for feeding children or taking teenagers on a trip, according to Erickson. Many companies offer us discounts, but those expenses are reimbursed by the fundraisers we host.
According to Erickson, in addition to selling pyrotechnics, the stalls support the Summer Leadership Series program, which trains young people to become leaders.
“Some of the funds go to those within the program to fund trips that CYA does during the summer, which take these teens to more educational places like museums or aquariums, or to places like Six Flags,” he said.
According to Erickson, some of those children had never done that in their life.
According to him, the program teaches the kids how to manage a business, interact with the community, and develop their sales skills. “These are skills that can be listed on resumes or job applications, so they help them later in life,” Erickson said.
That’s the appeal of visiting our stands, and the proceeds benefit the teens and our neighborhood, Erickson said. We encourage them to apply their leadership abilities for the good of our community as a whole.
The following sites are where those who wish to purchase fireworks from CYA can locate their stands. The hours of operation for each stand are 9:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m.
- Walmart, 500 South Utah Avenue in Idaho Falls.
- Broulims, 2730 East Sunnyside Road in Ammon.
- Albertsons, 1901 South 25th East in Ammon
- Broulims, 570 South State Street in Shelley.
According to Erickson, most stands would close by 4 p.m. on July 4. Until midnight, the Utah Avenue stand will remain open. The stands are scheduled to open on July 5 but close in the afternoon.
Visit CYA’s Facebook page to find out more about it or its firework stands.
