When Jeff Foose was growing up in Waterman, he remembers visiting Hopkins Park in DeKalb to hear the DeKalb Municipal Band perform.

"My mom loved to do that," Foose said. "We didn't get up here as much as we wanted because they were kind of lean times, but it was always nice because it was free entertainment. It's such a good time."

Decades later, Foose lives in DeKalb and is the head salesman of fireworks for northern Illinois for DCV Imports, LLC in Lincoln, Ill. The fireworks he sells are an integral part of the band concerts and dozens of other fireworks displays in or near DeKalb County.

Along with his wife, Peggy, and his daughter and son-in-law, Chris and Rob Fry, Foose sells the fireworks, plans displays and supervises their setup. His displays have already accompanied two DeKalb Municipal Band concerts this year and will accompany the band's Fourth of July performance. Foose has eight other fireworks displays to supervise that day as well.

Foose spoke with MidWeek reporter Curtis Clegg about the fireworks displays seen by thousands of people each year.

MidWeek: How did you get involved in the fireworks business?
Jeff Foose: My wife's family is a big farm family from DeKalb and they had a pond on their farm. We were out there messing around by the pond before the Fourth one year and we said, "Why don't we get some fireworks and play with it and have some fun?" So we did. …A few years later I said, "Let's get everything legal and do things the right way." I contacted the owner of S&N (fireworks company) and we went down there, took some tests and got all legal. We went through all the safety seminars and got the permits to make everything legal.

MW: When did all that happen?
JF: We started it before we got married, so that has been 18 years now. It has been 20 years since we started playing with it, and I have been with S&N (now DCV Imports, LLC) for probably 16 years.

MW: What is the process for getting into the business?
JF: It has gotten tougher lately because the rules and regulations have gotten tougher since we got involved. Back when we started, we just went down and took a quick test through Mines and Minerals (division of the Illinois Department of Natural Resources). It was a six or eight hour class, and then you had to go help somebody who was in the business for three or four shows before they'd feel confident. Back then you didn't have to have a lead shooter license, but now you need the lead shooter license, and you don't get that for a year or two. You have to have so many shows under your belt before they'll even consider it. …Like everything, after 9/11 things changed. The government took more control. It might be a little overboard for some people, but on the other hand I'm fingerprinted through (The Department of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms), Mines and Minerals, hazmat, and the fire marshal, so I figure my prints are all over the place.

MW: It sounds like a lot of different agencies are keeping their eye on you.
JF: They are. For state you have Mines and Minerals, the (Department of Natural Resources). They come in and inspect our bunker twice a year and make sure everything is legal. …ATF comes out about every two years and inspects the bunkers to make sure we have the proper locks, ventilation and paint. They are pretty picky and they'll take photos of it and make sure everything is legal. …We've never had an issue or problem with them. My wife, Peggy, does all the paperwork and makes sure we have the permits and insurances. We wouldn't have a business without her.

MW: What is your title, and what are your job duties?
JF: My title is lead shooter, and I design the shows. I help pick the product out. If I go to a show and I don't think the show was as good as it could be, I'll try and change it a bit for next year to make it even better. We just did the Genoa show and we were far enough away that some of the multiple cake boxes we used in the past needed to be stepped up a little, so we went from some of the smaller shots to some of the bigger shots so the crowd could see it better.

MW: Do you work with municipal and county planners to decide what the shows will look like?
JF: We have what we call a test fire in April every year and some of the towns will send people from their boards down. We'll give them a list of the variety of shells and multiple-shot boxes we are going to shoot off that day. They will grade the displays and then they'll say, "Hey, that Number 156 Happy Star – I really like that. Can we get a couple of those in our show?" and we'll try to accommodate them.

MW: I'm guessing you have to help them plan their budgets too.
JF: The biggest thing is the fact that, when they call me and say they want a 22-minute show, I can make a $1,000 budget last 22 minutes and I can make a $5,000 budget last 22 minutes. I need to know their budget and I have to look at their site. …I'll say, "You are too close here, so I can't fire a five-inch shell, but I can do threes and fours." I look at the distances to make sure everything is safe.

MW: Who is responsible for coordinating the fireworks with music?
JF: You know what? The music is just a plus. You sit back and shoot the show and everything works. For the DeKalb Park District, they play their music and when they do the "1812 Overture," we'll do salutes where the rockets should be blaring and stuff. Unless you get into an expensive show where everything is computerized, it's just a luck of the draw, and the fireworks seem to pop when you need them to.

MW: I guess you have done it enough times that it gets to be second nature.
JF: When we do the DeKalb Fourth of July, they play their music and they'll tell us to start. We have to make sure that music and fireworks are going together for over 20 minutes so when they finish that last song, we want our finale to be wrapping up. (Former band director) Dee (Palmer) was always fantastic about saying, "Jeff, we've got 22 minutes of music," so I'd have to tell my crew that we have 22 minutes of music, but there was applause or someone missed their cue and had to start over, you have to remember there will be a couple minutes of in-between time so it could end up being 24 or 26 (minutes). The crew that has done DeKalb has done it for 10 years and they are fantastic.

MW: What is your history with the DeKalb Municipal Band?
JF: Another company was doing the show, and one year it didn't go as well as it could have. …Dee Palmer and I had been talking, so after that I came in and picked it up after that. It was just kind of a blessing. Dee liked what we had done at a show he went to see and the next year he signed a contract with us. The best part for us was, after we did the first show for him, his wife came out and had tears in her eyes and she told my wife, "This was the first show in years that was the exact time we needed, and you lasted the whole time the songs were playing." Dee and I got to be very good friends over the years.

MW: Did Dee have specific visions of what he wanted from a fireworks show?
JF: He kind of knew what he wanted but he kind of left it up to us. He told me one time, "I do music, you do fireworks. Let's work together."

MW: Are you planning to continue to work with the DeKalb Park District?
JF: Our contract is signed through this year. You know, we got a nice pat on the back one year when we were reading the front page of the Chronicle and it listed all the fireworks that were going on in DeKalb County the week before and the week after the Fourth of July. There was only one show in DeKalb County that we didn't have.

MW: What safety precautions do you take for your shows?
JF: Anything can happen and you have to be prepared for it. You could have a low shell or the wind could change. The wind is the worst. We used to do shows for (Northern Illinois University) – and we still do – and you can sit and watch the flags at the top of the stadium and it could be blowing straight east, where 20 minutes before it was blowing straight north. In an area like NIU or even Hopkins Park, it's tough because it is a tight area and we have to be careful how we angle our racks. …I never want to see anybody get hurt, either in the audience or any of my people. We have a safety seminar before every show so we know exactly who's doing what. We always establish a safety zone where, if anything should happen, everybody heads to. When we're done setting up, everyone – myself included – we get out of the area and let the lead shooter do his job. Everybody knows what to do and where to go. I'm very strict – everybody has to have a hard hat, safety glasses, long pants and hard shoes.

MW: How many employees do you have?
JF: It's contract work so the guys get paid per show. On the Fourth of July we'll have about 74 people out there this year. There are probably about 15 guys that help us the most. …We have a handful of guys who want to work a lot of shows, but we also have guys who are happy to shoot one show and then go home and say, "I got to shoot my one show of the year."

MW: Where will you be on the Fourth of July?
JF: Anybody who works for our company, we take them over to Shabbona for breakfast at 9 a.m. and then we all head back to my bunker, my office basically. When we get there, there will be trucks and trailers waiting and lined up, and we have hazmat drivers for all of them. …(Last year) my DeKalb guys helped the Shabbona guys load up for their show, and the Shabbona guys helped load up the guys for the DeKalb show so they can be on the road by 10:30. Then we all helped load for the Leland show. …Everybody down there helps each other out.

MW: Do you go to all the shows to check on the setups?
JF: We're going to go to a lot of them this year, but we're going to try to end up in DeKalb. We also like to try and stop in Lake Holiday and Leland, and we'd also like to get over to Mt. Carroll. We don't get over there that often.

MW: How long does it take to set up a show?
JF: It will take 12 to 14 hours altogether. The guys will show up (at the show site) about 10 or 11 (a.m.) and they work on setup until it's dark. We'll usually take a lunch break about 1. …It's an all-day affair.

MW: Is every show different, or are there parts that are similar from show to show?
JF: Every show is different but there are a few shows that are the same. There's a piece called the happy star that's everyone's favorite. We have it at every show. It's gold and crackly when it goes off.

MW: You mentioned that you have been to China to visit a fireworks factory. How often do you get there?
JF: My wife and I love to travel. I was only in China once, in 2000, to look at product. Now they (the new owners of S&N fireworks, now known as DCV Imports) want me to go back.

MW: Is there anything else you would like to add?
JF: There is no better satisfaction than when that show is over and you hear the applause and the car horns honking. Our show might be over as far as fireworks, but for us the show isn't over until the door on that trailer is locked and everything is put away.