Written by Melinda Charlet
Almost halfway through its seventh season, Sunset on the Square, the free bi-monthly movie event sponsored by the City of St. George in partnership with Write it Up!, continues to see a great turnout. Even with higher than normal temperatures, approximately 1800 people showed up last Friday, June 26, with their blankets and chairs for the last movie for June. As with the previous Sunset on the Square evenings, the June 26 event was more than just a movie. The June 12 Sunset on the Square included face painting, games, crafts, water balloons, vendors, food, music and dancing, with the special activity being a giveaway of four tickets to the Neil Simon Festival in Cedar City. The special event held before the movie on June 26 was the annual “Nonprofit Night” which was held in conjunction with a star party put on by The St. George Astronomy Group.
Various nonprofit groups had information booths and activities for attendees to participate in. The nonprofit groups in attendance were Habitat for Humanity of Southwest Utah, Write it Up!, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Utah, the Dixie Elks Lodge, Girls on the Run of Southern Utah, Southern Utah Cares, CG Nonprofit Solutions, St. George Children’s Museum, SUU Headstart, The Dove Center, The Falls Event Center, Washington County Youth Crisis Center, American University Women’s eSMART Camp for Girls, and Utah Nonprofits Association. Many community members took the opportunity to sign-up as volunteers with the different organizations.
The movie selection for the evening was “Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory” starring Gene Wilder. Brad Harr and Associates and Dealer Collision Center provided Willy Wonka-style games for the children in attendance and even sponsored a Golden Ticket contest for six lucky participants. The 1st place contestant won a year supply of chocolates from Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory, and the runner-up received a one year family pass to the St. George Children’s Museum.
The St. George Astronomy Group offered another highlight of the June 26 Sunset on the Square, providing telescopes for viewing the sun as well as several planets throughout the evening. Solar telescopes were available to safely view the sun along with its solar flares. During and after the movie, other telescopes were set up to view Saturn and its rings, Jupiter, Venus and the moon. St. George Astronomy Group is comprised of local volunteers that love the sky and host star parties once or twice a month. They can be contacted through their website https://sites.google.com/site/stgeorgeastronomygroup/home.
Sunset on the Square is held in downtown St. George at the Town Square located at 50 S. Main St. The family-friendly event continues every second and fourth Friday of the month through Aug. 28. The next movie is “The Lego Movie” on July 10. On July 24, there will be another special event featuring Pioneer Day games and the movie “Three Amigos.” The City of St. George will also host a fireworks display after the movie in celebration of Pioneer Day. For more information about Sunset on the Square, visit https://www.sgcity.org/cityevents/index.php#tab-1. To learn how to sponsor or purchase a booth for the next event, contact Dawn McLain at (702) 860-2341 or [email protected].
