Anonymous letter threatening retaliation for setting off fireworks, galvanized community

Credit: Yana Paskova

Credit: Yana Paskova

An anonymous letter threatened retribution for months if fireworks were blasted after 9 p.m., so a community came together to light up the sky for the Fourth of July,

Neighbor Tony Ivanaj saw the letter and set off fireworks promptly at 9 p.m., according to WXYZ.

“Don’t let terrorism win ... if you give into fear you lost,” Ivanaj said.

Other neighbors had a cornhole tournament that raised money for charity.

"It was the negativity from the letter that made us want to turn around and bring the community together," Jeff Rikki, who organized the cornhole tournament, told WXYZ.

The anonymous letter writer said that he works an overnight shift and the previous year's celebration he only got two hours of sleep. The writer said the retaliation would be in the coming days and months, according to WXYZ.

Police checked on the neighbors throughout the evening to make sure there were no incidents, according to WXYZ.

"Thank you for writing it because you have brought the community together in a way that I had no ... I don't think anyone had any idea it would bring together this many people," Ivanaj told WXYZ. "It's awesome to see the community come together over... something that they all agreed was just unfair – that letter. It's just ridiculous."

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