Martin fireworks stand declares special day for little girl
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WEAKLEY COUNTY, Tenn. — There’s a new holiday in Weakley County, and it’s all because of one brave little girl. Anna Kate Wenz is Martin’s 2-year-old warrior princess who loves fireworks. Big Bash Fireworks owner Ken Basham said Anna Kate fell in love with fireworks last year. “And this year she’s been talking about fireworks for the last couple of weeks, and I wanted to help support the family and help support Anna Kate,” Basham said. But Anna Kate is no ordinary little girl. She is going through 12 months of chemo treatments for a brain tumor. So Basham decided to start Anna Kate Day, where 10 percent of all his fireworks sales on July 3 went to help Anna Kate and give her family a personal fireworks show. “When she found out we were coming to get fireworks from Mr. Ken, that’s all she could talk about on the way home,” said Anna Kate’s mom, Jennifer. “She wanted big fireworks, and she wanted them to go ‘boom’ in the air.” For Anna Kate’s family, this July 4 is about more than freedom. “It’s a celebration that she’s here with us, and this year for sure, just to watch her be excited about something as small as fireworks,” Jennifer said. And it’s a celebration of the one thing Anna Kate always has — her smile. “And to watch her smile through all this on some of the darkest days — she never loses her smile — and that’s what’s carrying us through as a family is that she’s still smiling,” Jennifer said. Big Bash Fireworks raised more than $700 Friday for the family and is still counting donations. If you would like to donate, there is an account in Anna Kate’s name at First Citizen’s Bank and the credit union in Martin. You also can send letters to the Target House in Memphis with “Anna Kate Wenz” on the envelope.
