MUSKEGON — You don't have to go all the way to Times Square in New York City to see the ball drop, as the city of Muskegon will have its own celebration on New Year's Eve. One Muskegon-based nonprofit teamed up with several community businesses so the city could have its own ball drop.
As a Muskegon native, realtor Terry Puffer wanted to make an impact in his community. It's why he and his wife founded the nonprofit Lakeshore Legacy Project.
"We basically host three events year-round, and every one of those events gives support back to the community, so we raise money from different companies that support the community. They put money in to have the events, and then we collect canned goods, clothing, everything, and then give it back to the community," Puffer said. "I saw a gap of having to be able to tailor custom events that you don't have to have money to attend, so all of our events are free."
The nonprofit's final event of the year will be a New Year's Eve ball drop in downtown Muskegon and will feature four local deejays as well as a fireworks display. Muskegon resident JJ Cox of Big Round Sound designed every inch of the eight-foot-wide 1,000-pound ball himself.
"Designing was about eight hours. It took me 20 hours to fine-tune everything, fit it, and then weld it up and paint it," said Cox. "Once we get it on site tomorrow, we'll hang all the lights inside of it and get all the wiring done. And then there's actually a skin that we'll wrap around it."
Last year's inaugural ball drop celebration drew around 12,000 people to downtown Muskegon. It'll be Joey Cruz Alonzo Jr.'s first New Year's Eve event in the city, as he just moved to the area a couple of weeks ago.
"It's cool to have that right here by the lake. When you got fireworks going by the lake at the beach, when you can have a fire — you know what I'm saying — right down the street ... you can't beat that," Alonzo Jr. said.
The free and family-friendly New Year's Eve ball drop event will begin at 8 p.m. in downtown Muskegon Tuesday.
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