It was a good first-day sale of fireworks Friday for the Friends of the East Union Cemetery.
So said Gloria Stanley, who has been with the local non-profit group for the past nine years.
She along with Stephen Tompkins and Toni Ageno enjoyed operating the TNT Fireworks booth located in the Walmart shopping center at 1502 S. Main St. in recent years.
“We get good traffic (in this area),” said Tompkins.
This fireworks booth is one of 14 throughout Manteca that are being operated by local non-profit organizations.
According to Stanley, proceeds from the sales of the Backyard Celebrations – included are big tickets items such as the towering Big Bang (4 feet in height) and Launch Pad Heroes, to the fountain display Eternal Eruption, World Champ, and Silent Insanity – will help fund various projects at the East Union Cemetery.
“We recently purchased a columbarium (used for funerary urns, etc.),” she said. “This (firework sales) will help pay for that.”
The extra funding will also help Friends of the EU Cemetery in sprucing up and maintaining trees, the veterans’ plaza, and picking up flower pots, to name a few.
Only “Safe & Sane” fireworks are legal in Manteca.
The sales of Safe & Sane fireworks will continue on the Fourth of July or as long as supplies last.
Stanley indicated that her booth will be open throughout the next few days, from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Other Manteca non-profits selling fireworks are:
*A Bridge to Change (Phantom fireworks), 1081 S. Main St. in the Jack in the Box parking lot
*Christian Worship Center Academy (TNT fireworks), 1172 N. Main St., Save Mart
*Christian Worship Center (TNT), 900-1090 N. Main St., CAL Fit Manteca.
*East Union Athletic Boosters (Phantom), 1125 N. Union Rd., Valley Christian Fellowship
*EU Band Boosters (TNT), 1280 W. Lathrop Rd., Raley’s.
*His Way Recovery House (TNT), 1233 W. Yosemite Ave., NWC W. Yosemite Avenue & North Union Road
*Knights of Columbus St. Anthony’s Council (TNT), 1105 S. Main St., NWC S. Main Street & Mission Ridge
*Manteca Area Soccer League (Phantom), 1100 S. Airport Wy., NWC Fishback / Daniels
*MHS Athletic Boosters (Phantom), 131 Spreckels Ave., IHOP
*Place of Refuge (Phantom), 1630 E. Yosemite Ave., Wendy’s.
*Sequoia Church (TNT), 1050 S. Union Rd., SEC Union / Wawona.
*West Valley Pentecostals (TNT), 700 N. Union Rd., NEC N. Union / West Alameda
*Young Life Foundation (Phantom), 815 W. Lathrop Rd., Calvary Community Church.
