Fremont man has a passion for fireworks

Life is a blast.

That’s how it’s been for Mike Henrickson of Fremont.

“I always had a passion for fireworks,” Henrickson said. “When I got older, I went overboard.”

The firecrackers he enjoyed as a youth became illegal to buy.

“When the laws got too stringent, I decided to go into direct importation,” Henrickson said.

He obtained federal and state permits to import and distribute Class B display fireworks. He got a commercial driver’s license with a hazardous material endorsement.

He also had a Class C fireworks stand.

He owned a lumber yard in Dodge and then formed Midwest Fireworks Wholesalers in 1998.

The largest artillery shell the company sells is 16 inches in diameter. The smallest �” just

1 1/2 inches.

Henrickson’s face lights up when he talks about the shows.

“A controlled explosion. It’s an adrenaline rush �” the power, the beauty and the excitement of the crowd,” he said.

Another explosion led to the eventual sale of the company in 2005.

Henrickson is also a federal firearms dealer. He bought, sold and tested guns.

While testing a .270-caliber deer rifle, he put in a shell and shot from the hip to a block of wood.

“The gun blew up. There was a double dose of powder in the cartridge. Chunks of metal hit my leg with such velocity that it crushed the nerves and veins,” Henrickson said.

Seven surgeries followed.

“I’m in a tremendous amount of pain. I’ve been to nerve specialists all over the country,” Henrickson added.

Even nerve blocks didn’t help.

Henrickson came up with a different approach.

“A smile on you face is the best nerve treatment you can come up with,” he said.

“The good Lord gives you natural endorphins,” Henrickson added.

When the medical bills shot up to $300,000, he sold the lumber yard, his house �” even his 1968 Plymouth GTX muscle car.

Henrickson, and his wife, Denice, moved to Fremont.

Midwest Fireworks Wholesalers relocated to Blair, and he stayed on as sales manager.

He typically works with the logistics of importing fireworks into the United States and clearing customs. Fireworks come from China, Mexico and Brazil.

“The Chinese are still the experts,” Henrickson said.

This has been an unusual year for fireworks due to a Feb. 14 explosion.

“A 40-foot container blew up on a (Chinese) dock and destroyed

20 warehouses. It closed down ports on all Class B fireworks

except for Hong Kong. It’s really jammed up right now,” Henrickson said.

“Maersk is the only steamship company that can ship class B,” he added.

These days, nothing larger than an 8-inch shell can be ordered, but the company still has shells as large as 16 inches.

“I’d like to light them manually, but anything over 6 inches has to be lit electronically,” Henrickson said.

“We have artillery shells that make a design when they burst,” Henrickson said.

Among the patterns are a star, bow tie, smiley face and colored flag.

“Display cakes are on the ground in large boxes �” they fan back and forth,” Henrickson said.

His personal favorite is a salute.

“A flash of intense light and a tremendous loud burst,” Henrickson said. “That’s what crowds like.”

In 2005, at St. Wenceslaus Church in Dodge, 32 shells were lined up for a show given during a church picnic.

The Rev. Dennis DeGuzman, who served in Iraq with 809th Quartermasters Battalion, recalled assisting with the show.

“That guy (Henrickson) can really put on a show �” spectacular,” DeGuzman said.

“Father Dennis DeGuzman had a passion for fireworks,” Henrickson said.

Henrickson has a strong faith, and recently presented a faith talk at Pohocco Lutheran Church.

Henrickson was born in Carroll and then moved to Dodge.

“My grandparents never talked about their heritage,” he said.

But Henrickson’s sister traced the family lineage.

He is part French Canadian Sioux.

“I’m related to Laura Ingalls and Judge Roy �” the hanging judge,” Henrickson said.

“I have my funeral planned. I’m donating my body to the Anatomical Board then having an aerial burial,” Henrickson said.

A final salute.