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Proud to be me is a series of profiles with ordinary and extraordinary people in the Selwyn District. This week we speak to Chris O’Brien, who leads the volunteer group behind the 46th edition of Selwyn Fireworks being held this weekend.

When Chris O’Brien first attended the local fireworks display after moving to Rolleston from Auckland, the scale of it stopped him in his tracks.

“We went to it for the first time and we were like, ‘Holy hell, this is massive. What an awesome event’.”

When he read that the long-time organiser Jens Christensen was retiring and the event could disappear, he stepped forward, despite knowing nothing about fireworks.

Only a few months later, Jens introduced him to a room full of strangers as the new President of Rolleston Fireworks.

“It was a bit of a hospital pass,” laughs O’Brien.

“And I didn’t realise how big the ball was that got passed to me.”

The 44-year-old has now led the event for about eight years. Under his presidency, it separated from the Rolleston Residents Association, became a charitable trust and rebranded from Rolleston Fireworks to Selwyn Fireworks—reflecting an audience that extends well beyond the town.

The permitted capacity is 15,000, but organisers decided they would struggle with that number and have capped tickets to 12,000.

The event’s main purpose is not fireworks, but to createa platform for community groups to raise money.

“What we do is bring people together for them to raise money, most year’s between $25,000 and $45,000.”

Schools, sports clubs and other not-for-profits receive free sites in exchange for helping to run the event. Commercial vendors pay market rates, and organisers choose the vendors that don’t compete with the community stalls.

The event has become much more expensive, with the cost of pyrotechnics increasing from about $30,000 to $50,000 in five years, while the overall event cost has climbed from $72,000 to $125,000.

“We rely on support from organisations like the Selwyn District Council, Pub Charity and our commercial partners, because gate sales only cover 60% of the cost.”

The scale of the event almost sounds overwhelming for a small band of volunteers, and the grants help to cover 3.5km of fencing, security, traffic management, Wi-Fi, insurance and many layers of regulatory approval.

“We even have to negotiate with Civil Aviation to get flights rerouted for 20minutes because we’re on a flight path”

He says his background as safety manager at Dairyworks in Hornby helps to navigate regulations, a role he took after selling the local Storage King franchise.

O’Brien grew up in West Auckland and spent eight years in the United States chasing a professional golf dream on the minor tours.

After returning home, he spent a decade at Air New Zealand, moving from baggage handling and aircraft operations into training, from freight logistics to safety projects. This is where he met his wife Ayyam who also worked for the national carrier.

The young family was keen to leave Auckland and used the opportunity to open a Storage King franchise in Rolleston in 2017.

“Honestly, best decision we ever made,” he says. “The only regret we have is we didn’t do it sooner.”

Through his children’s sport and the storage business, he supported rugby, football, softball and hockey clubs. The business provided free storage and Sunday office space to the Rolleston Toy Library.

O’Brien was one of the early Rolleston Rotary members, co-chaired the residents’ association and volunteers with his family to teach his children about helping people less fortunate than themselves, involving them in Toot for Tucker, coming up on November 11th in Lincoln and 25th in Rolleston.

But he worries about volunteer fatigue.

“The community groups are slowly dwindling,” he says. “It’s the same volunteers coming back year on year, and they’re getting tired, they’re getting older. We need some younger generational blood to come through.”

Asked what keeps him going, his answer returns to the event’s simplest pleasures and widest impact.

“I love watching the kids enjoy the night, the smiles, laughs and “oooohss” and “ahhhhhs”. And I absolutely love the reach we have in helping community groups from across Selwyn.  Counting the money they make afterwards is just so satisfying.”

Last modified: 29 Oct 2026 11:26am