COVID-19 leads to cancellation of SMC’s annual event
By Sam Catanzaro
Santa Monica College (SMC) has officially canceled its “Celebrate America” fireworks show due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and restrictions of large-scale, in-person events.
This would have been the 38th year for the popular community picnic and fireworks spectacular, originally scheduled for Saturday, June 27, 2020.
“It is particularly disappointing that Celebrate America had to be cancelled this year, at a time when we at Santa Monica College would love to gather with our community,” said Dr. Kathryn E. Jeffery, SMC Superintendent/President.
“I can’t predict when events like Celebrate America will be allowed to resume, or when folks will begin to feel comfortable in crowds again,” added Linda Sullivan, SMC Event Producer and Associate Dean of Facilities Programming. “But when they do, they will be greeted with the greatest enthusiasm.”
Just last month event organizers canceled Santa Monica’s annual Fourth of July parade, also due to COVID-19.
As of June 15, there have been 336 COVID-19 cases in Santa Monica and 22 deaths. In Santa Monica nursing homes and other residential congregate settings there have been 312 cases and 32 deaths among both residents and staff. Countywide there have been 73,791 cases and 2,926 deaths.
