There are five big Fs this Independence Day, and they can all be found at the Greenwood-Leflore County Chamber of Commerce’s 4th of July celebration, “Stars and Stripes in the Park.”
It will be an evening to enjoy food, hang out with friends, have fun and, of course, honor the country’s freedom. Those are some F-words worth celebrating.
“And, of course, my personal favorite is fireworks!” said Beth Stevens, executive director of the Chamber of Commerce. “This is a great family event, and each year, we see so many people from all over the community to come out and enjoy this event. It’s really a great event for everyone.”
The annual celebration will be held June 25 at Whittington Park. The park will open at 5 p.m., and admission to the event is free. The public is invited to come and set up chairs, blankets and picnics for the evening.
For those who don’t want to bring their own picnic baskets, vendors will be selling a variety of items including hamburgers, hot dogs, barbecue, fish, grilled corn on the cob, funnel cakes, lemonade, snow cones and more.
Greenwood Market Place will be one of the businesses on hand. It will continue its tradition of giving out free slices of watermelons for as long as supplies last. Other vendors will represent Leflore County organizations such as churches and civic groups.
At 6:30 p.m., all children are invited to meet around the fire truck to walk in the Children’s Parade. Participants are encouraged to wear red, white and blue or a costume.
Throughout the evening there will be games and inflatables for the children. There will be a small charge of $5 for entry to the inflatables section.
“There’s also a children’s area under the covered pavilion that will include lots of games and activities for the children that are free of charge,” Stevens said. “We want everyone, regardless of their ability to pay, to be able to enjoy the fun.”
Following the Children’s Parade, there will be a patriotic program, which will include an invocation, the Pledge of Allegiance, the singing of the National Anthem, a fly-over, a 21-gun salute presented by American Legion Post 29 and the presentation of colors by the Greenwood Police Department.
Entertainment for the evening will be provided by Perfected Praise, a Greenwood gospel choir, and the Mississippi band Trademark, who will entertain the crowd beginning at 7 p.m.
“This is an event I come to every year and I am really excited that we will have a chance to perform,” said Sherod Reed, director of Perfected Praise. “This is our first time performing at Stars and Stripes.”
Reed is also excited about incorporating the Bridge Community Choir into their gospel choir’s performance for three or four songs. He said the Bridge choir is just getting off the ground and hopes this will be an opportunity for the public to hear the choir and maybe even join them.
“We are still trying to find singers for the Bridge choir,” Reed said.
The Fireworks show will be around 9 p.m.
“Once again, we are counting on donations from the community to help with expenses and to be able to provide a quality event for our citizens,” said Stevens. “Without donations, this would not be possible. Every dollar helps. That’s how we can keep this event free to the public. We have so many donors already, and we thank them for every dollar that has been donated.”
Major sponsors for “Stars and Stripes in the Park” are the City of Greenwood, Leflore County, Greenwood Utilities, Viking Range Corp., Johnson-McAdams Firm, J.J. Ferguson, Scott Petroleum and Greenwood Leflore Hospital.
For more information or to make a donation, call the chamber at 453-4152.
