Independence Day Celebration
I'm JB Howick, and I'm writing to invite members of the community to form an Independence Day Celebration Committee. I understand that everyone's busy, but I believe our growing community would be well served with a more immersive celebration. I believe that working together we can bring the skills and experience together to make these celebrations a success!Notably, our country's semiquincentennial or 250th Independence Day celebration is coming in 2026. That celebration should be a home-run for our community and I believe our efforts to build to that celebration starting in 2024 is important.
The goal of this effort is not to create another comprehensive, non-profit organization. I'm hoping to create a meeting of individuals and community group representatives who can help share the load to achieve a single goal on behalf of the community.
I do have an ulterior motive. I believe an Independence Day celebration can be used to encourage volunteerism, which I believe is declining across America. It is my sincere hope that individuals and organizations would participate with booths of their own showing the wonderful things each does for, and bring to, our community, as well as encouraging membership and involvement in our many non-profit community groups.
Finally, I'd like to offer an unofficial and merely possible outline of what such a celebration could look like. I recognize that doing this could be equally intimidating and motivating, but I'm hoping that seeing a vision of what we could have will, indeed, be motivating.
If you are willing to work together to enjoy Independence Day celebrations like those so many of us remember from our youth, please send an email to keithjr@howick.org and I will add you to the growing email list.
Thank you!
-JB Howick
Draft Independence Day celebration:
- Free to access by the public, most activities free to the public.
- Non-profit participation can include fund-raising activities (some listed below, not at all exhaustive)
- Funds for this celebration can be raised annually via:
- Sponsorships
- Raffles (Kid's bundle, Adult's bundle, some cities that do this have included a direct cash prize)
- Proposed to schedule regularly on the Saturday before the 4th (or the Saturday of the 4th) to minimize competition with family events and to avoid to the greatest degree employment conflicts. It also allows us to close Broadway multiple times and/or for long times with the least impact on traffic.
- Involve businesses by hosting a Best Dressed Business competition.
- Free T-Shirts for youth.
- One of the goals is to encourage participation by our local Military bases and National Guard, who would be welcome to have recruitment booths. Participation could include unit marching, proficiency displays, bands, and vehicle shows.
- Begin notifying businesses, non-profits, churches, clubs, and anyone else who may be interested in participating no later than the first week of April. The military should be contacted no later than the previous August.
- Playing of Reveille
- Live reading of the Declaration of Independence
- Flag raising ceremony
- Public singing of the National Anthem
- (Fundraising opportunity) Community Breakfast
- (Fundraising opportunity) 5K Fun Run
- Led by a Grand Marshall (community contributor, celebrity, one of our colorful residents, etc.)
- Flag bearers, bands & floats
- Military, emergency services & agricultural (tractors)
- Businesses, clubs/non-profits & City/County/State politicians
- Shriner's mini-cars & horse clubs
- PA system with parade MC
- Intermission activity/presentation while the parade turns around
- An issue for viewers from Pine to Cedar who don't always know to wait around and cheer again.
- Something that's not officially part of the parade that can clear away quickly as the parade returns such as our High School cheerleaders.
- Or invite clowns from the State Rodeo Association
- Stage & begin at the alley entrance on C St (~ 50 C St). End at the alley entrance on B St (~ 50 B St).
- Kids & pets
- (Fundraising opportunity) Beer/cider/wine garden
- (Fundraising opportunity) Photo booth/photographs
- (Fundraising opportunity) Car show. Additionally:
- Antique/Modern Military Vehicle show
- (Fundraising opportunity) Kid's zone!
- Bouncy house
- Face painting
- Arts & Crafts
- Vendor fair & food trucks
- Contests (kids and/or adults, sponsorship opportunities)
- Watermelon eating contest
- Hot dog eating contest
- Doughnut on a string competition
- Bingo
- Blue ribbon pie contest (not an eating contest... necessarily)
- BBQ contest
- Volleyball, corn hole, ladder & spike ball, horse shoes, etc.
- Hourly Fire department water display
- DJs with Music
12:30 PM Free access (Advertising for this throughout the day at the various locations)
- Museum access until 6:30 PM
- Swimming until 6:30 PM
- Or if we really want to impress everyone, land one nearby then it becomes part of the military vehicle show.
- Bring your team to win prizes
- No water balloons allowed
- Super soakers, water guns, buckets
- Fire dept provides filling station and starts the fun with a blast of their horns.
- No soaking anyone outside designated area!
- Drawing for the raffle winners!
- Announcement of all the parade & contest winners!
- Announcement of the Best Dressed Business winner!
- Could be at the park, the school, or another location.
- Free popcorn!
- (Fundraising opportunity) Concessions
- Follows movie
- Held over the river, west of town. Close Broadway and invite people to bring lawn chairs to sit in the street.
- Forbid flash-bang fireworks and set a minimum altitude to minimize pet problems.
- Hope like crazy there isn't a later-than-10PM train. Noisy suckers.