The stage is set for the annual Rotaract Rarotonga Christmas in the Park event which will be held tomorrow at the National Auditorium and Domes from 4.30pm to 8.30pm.

Dubbed as one of the major Christmas events on the island, it will bring families together to celebrate the festive occasion with music, live entertainments, face paintings, games and food. The night will culminate with a much-anticipated fireworks display.

For organisers Rotaract Rarotonga, the Christmas in the Park is an opportunity to raise much needed funds to carry out its community projects in Rarotonga and the Pa Enua.

Rotaract Rarotonga president Toru Nooroa said they have a budget of $8000 to $10,000 to organise an event of such magnitude.

Approximately half of the budget is allocated to a three-minute, continuous fireworks display. The remaining funds cover venue and equipment rental, decorations, catering, volunteer uniforms and other associated expenses.

“It’s a huge undertaking and requires funding and volunteer support to pull this off. So we are thankful to all the sponsors that have come on board and the volunteers who have pledged their time to help run the event and entertain the crowd on the day,” Nooroa said.

“We also thank our vendors who have registered for spots to sell food and other items. We have 20 vendors this year and unfortunately, we had to turn down others due to space limitations.”

Capital Security Bank has joined as the platinum sponsor, and CIPS Electronics as the gold sponsor. The other sponsors who have supported in cash and kind are ANZ Bank, Bank of the South Pacific, Cook Islands General Transport, Castaway Resort, Cook Islands Trading Corporation (CITC), Island Car and Bike Hire, Cook Islands Steel, Mama Ts, Cook Islands Funeral Services Ltd (directors and owners Tui and Robert Muriwai and manager Lee Chandar), Vonnias and Vodafone Cook Islands.

“We are so grateful to the support from these sponsors, without them it would have been impossible to organise the Christmas in the Park. We are still expecting some more sponsors to come onboard and we hope to secure them before the event,” Nooroa said.

Local non-governmental organisation Kōrero O Te `Ōrau will be assisting with volunteers, including members of their 'Ātui'anga ki te Tango youth group, who will also be entertaining the crowd.

Te Manava Ora o te Ivi Maori (Manava Ora) cultural art led by dancer and choreographer Jackie Tuara will be performing alongside members of the Faith Alive Dream Centre Cook Islands (FADC). The event will also feature the Resound Kids Choir run by local singer Talitha Horn.

The winner of the 2024 Cook Islands Has Talent, Mama Ra, will also be performing with her sister Konini Rongo. There will be performances from community groups including the entertaining Filipino community and others.

One of the major stage attractions will be TangoBeatz, a talented Cook Islands artist based in Australia. TangoBeatz arrived in the Cook Islands for the Kīnura Music Festival, organised by Kōrero O Te `Ōrau.

The master of ceremonies for the event will be the witty and lively Tony Fe’ao.

“We have an interesting line up of entertainers and are awaiting confirmation from others before we finalise the line up. We’re so thankful to these entertainers for volunteering their time. We really appreciate their support!” Nooroa said.

“A huge meitaki maata to members of Rotaract Rarotonga who are also taking out time in between their busy work schedules to organise this event.”

The event will also include mascots of favourite characters and Santa Claus, who will be available for photographs.

“There will be lots of kids’ games and activities for the little ones. We are trying our best to put together an unforgettable programme for everyone to enjoy,” Nooroa said.

“The night will culminate with the much-anticipated fireworks display at Victoria Park. We request that neighbours secure their fur babies to avoid unnecessary distress.

“We invite people to come out in numbers and get into the festive mood with the Christmas in the Park.”

The entry fee is $5 for adults and free for children under five years of age.