July 25, 2025 submitted by the Harbor Development Committee
One of the wonderful things about Hingham is the amount of people who participate to help make Hingham a better place. There is always a core group who take a leadership position, who some refer to as the “mutual admiration society”. The July 2 drone show could not have happened without those individuals and the generous donors who helped to fund the celebration that will continue throughout 2026 as part of the celebration of the 250th anniversary of the American Revolution.
Those volunteers will be the first to tell you they don’t need to be thanked, so we’d like to give thanks to the organizations and donors that made this event happen. They include:
The Hingham Historical Society
The Hingham Harbor Development Committee
The Hingham Police and Fire Departments
The Hingham Department of Public Works
The Hingham Select Board and Town Hall
While a privately funded event, the Town’s contributions often go unnoticed. Specifically, the support of Police Sergeant Kilroy, Harbormaster Ken Corson, and Superintendent of Public Works Ashley Sanford and their colleagues enabled to logistics of managing thousands of people go smoothly, and for that we can’t thank them enough.
We also want to thank our donors, including:
The Mike Reilly Classic, without whose donation this event could not have happened; The Hingham Lions Club, who carried the torch for the fireworks for nearly three decades before the endangered Oyster catcher birds on Button Island precluded fireworks; and The Friends of Hingham Harbor.
Other donors included:
Anonymous (3)
The Anderson Family
Lynn and Todd Anderson
Marco and Laura Boer
Mark Boyle
Jane C. Carr
Mike Dwyer Kathie Mignacca
Philip and Deborah Edmundson
Ed & Lisa Follen
Takashi Fukuda and Dr. Janet Codley
Del’s Lemonade
Mary and Bill Farrington
Graham Family
Grueter Family
Holohan Concessions & Novelties LLC
The Koskinas Family
Liberty Bay Credit Union
Ferdinand and Linda Lucas
In Honor of Valerie and Jack Mine
Brooke Motta in Memory of Ed Mullin
Katie Murphy in honor of Stephen Clifford, Sr.
Necia O’Neill
Liza and Tom O’Reilly
Chris and John Richmond
The Shamberger Family
Leslie Smith
The Tollefsen Family
Judy and Tom Varney
Megan Ward
Ellen and Kevin Whalen
Margie Wollam
Jean Zarillo in honor of Valentino Zarrillo
And our supporters:
Hingham Anchor
Hingham Harbor Media
Hingham Maritime Center
Hingham Downtown Association
Derby Street Shops
Hingham Unity Council
Hingham Newcomers Club
Hingham Yacht Club
The “mutual admiration society” is already planning some of the celebrations for 2026. Stay tuned, we’re aiming for another big “first-time event” in 2026.