Candy Bomber to drop 1000 candy bars over Scera Park event
courtesy art Colonel Gail Halvorsen, the Candy Bomber
courtesy art Colonel Gail Halvorsen, the Candy Bomber
He’s known throughout the world as the famous “Candy Bomber” or “Uncle Wiggly Wings,” so when Cries of Freedom announced that Gail Halvorsen would be dropping 1,000 candy bars at Scera Park at 4 p.m. Friday, July 3, people in and out the state took notice.
Recently featured in the full-length documentary “Meet The Mormons,” Halvorsen has become a recognized figure around the world. It is anticipated that several thousand will be on hand to experience the fly-over and candy drop. Military volunteers will also be on the ground to hand out candy for those who may not be a part of the drop.
Halvorsen’s candy drop on July 3 could easily be the last, or one of the last drops, the Candy Bomber will make. He is now 94 years old and those candy bars get heavy after a while.
While this may be the last drop it isn’t the first time Halvorsen has dropped candy in Orem. In 2008 he made a special candy/gum drop for the children at Noah Webster Academy.
He paid a visit to the students of Noah Webster in Orem and attempted to re-enact his 1948 candy drop to the children of West Berlin. Halvorsen tossed the chutes from the door of a REMOS, a light sport plane instead of tossing them from the flare chute of a transport plane. The students were poised to run and retrieve parachutes from the soccer field at Orem High School, but the wind caught most of the parachutes and they landed on the street, in backyards and on other fields at Orem High.
This time Halvorsen will be flying in a fixed wing bomber from World War II with two escort planes attending. The rumble of the engines will bring chills and thrills to both children and adults as he does a low fly-over for the drop. Only elementary-aged children will be allowed to grab a parachute after the drop.
Cries of Freedom and the Colonial Heritage Festival share the Scera Park and work in conjunction with the Freedom Festival to bring a large Independence Day Celebration to the festival’s big party. Both events are excited to have Halvorsen for this unique experience.
While visitors wait for the drop they can visit and participate in many activities at Cries of Freedom including the many family games and races, displays and contests and entertainment throughout the day.
The Colonial Heritage Festival invites visitors, particularly children, to meet history face to face. See the way people lived day to day in the Colonial period and then visit with Ben Franklin, George Washington and others about the fight for Independence. The cannons will go off every two hours or so and the Redcoats will be in the militia’s musket range throughout the day as well.
Both events are free to the public and run from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. July 2-4. A free shuttle is offered from the Orem High Parking lot.