This Thursday night, the sky above Transfer Beach will glow with the light from 110 lanterns during a special event being planned by the Ladysmith Rotary Club.
The Ladysmith Rotary Club is inviting the community to “Light up the Night for Heritage Week” Thursday, Feb. 19 at 8 p.m. at the Transfer Beach Amphitheatre, as the club celebrates Ladysmith Heritage Week in conjunction with Rotary’s 110th anniversary.
The Rotary Club plans to release 110 Chinese lanterns into the night sky at 8 p.m., and the club will be selling the lanterns for $5, with all proceeds going toward the rebuilding of the playground at Transfer Beach.
Club president Cheryl Leukefeld and Pemberton Holmes Realty have donated the lanterns, which are made out of biodegradable, fireproof tissue.
The Rotary Club is working with the Ladysmith Kinsmen Club to raise money to rebuild the playground, and Leukefeld says they were trying to think of unique ways to raise as much money as possible.
“We thought it would be really fun,” she said. “We’re really excited, and I think it’s going to be just great.”
The 110 lanterns represent the 110 years that Rotary has been serving communities around the world.
Leukefeld says the lanterns only burn for six minutes, but they can get as high as 100 feet before floating back down to the harbour and disintegrating.
“I think it’s going to be phenomenal when they’re floating,” she said. “With 110 of them floating, it’s going to be beautiful.”
Leukefeld says the lanterns are a Chinese tradition, and she was inspired when she saw them years ago.
Rotarians will be at Transfer Beach around 7:45 p.m. to sell the lanterns, and Rotarians will be available to help light them, as Leukefeld says it takes two people to light the lanterns.
The new playground costs $172,000, and the Kinsmen and Rotary Club are aiming to have it completed by this summer.
For more information about “Light Up the Night for Heritage Week,” look for Rotary Club of Ladysmith on Facebook.