Celebrating the Land of Liberty

Every Fourth of July is a big celebration in Redmond, but this year there’s even more fun in store with Deschutes County celebrating its centennial anniversary. Patriotism will be on full display with more than 1,400 flags flying proudly throughout downtown Redmond. There will be a two-in-one parade and a full day of events at the fairgrounds. The whole day will be chock full of free activities for the whole family.

“I believe it is one of the most patriotic events Redmond can have,” said Karen Sande, events director for the Redmond Chamber of Commerce & CVB. “There are so many families that come out and enjoy the day.”

The festivities kick off at 10 a.m. with the biggest parade of the year, sponsored by St. Charles Health Care of Redmond and hosted by the Redmond Chamber of Commerce. The route follows Sixth Street from Dogwood Avenue. to Forest Avenue.

“Sweet Land of Liberty” is the parade theme this year, in honor of the County’s 100th birthday, with prizes being awarded to participants who best display this idea through their parade entry. With more than 100 participants this year — including floats and more, representing local businesses, individuals, churches, schools and 4-H clubs — there’s sure to be plenty of candy for the crowd, a favorite for the young (and young at heart).

This year the parade will also include the rodeo royalty and several floats and other participants that are a part of the Deschutes County Fair & Rodeo Parade. For many years, the fair parade was the only parade in Redmond, and took place several weeks after the Fourth of July, during the County Fair. Merging the fair parade with the Fourth of July parade will save the city time and money, as well as giving opportunity for the County Fair to begin promoting their event ahead of time.

“I would ask that all spectators come out and enjoy themselves,” said Ross Rogers, marketing coordinator for the fair. “Then after everyone is done with the parade, come out and enjoy the festivities at the fairgrounds.”

Beginning at 11 a.m. and running until 4 p.m., the Deschutes County Fair & Expo Center is hosting the fourth annual Old Fashioned Fourth of July. Central Oregon Truck Company and 42 other local businesses are sponsoring this event, which is free for the whole family. There is a wide variety of great choices for the kids, including face painting, a petting zoo and pony rides, bouncy houses, potato sack and three-legged races and pie and watermelon eating contests to name just a few. Newly added attractions this year are a zip line, and bubble soccer — a game that puts players into inflatable bubble balls that they run around inside of and bounce off of each other like bumper cars.

There will also be sports such as archery, basketball, disc golf, badminton and bocce ball. Arts and crafts stations staffed with volunteers will give visitors a chance to create their own take-home projects.

For the music lovers, local band Burnin’ Moonlight will provide live entertainment from 12:30 – 3:30 p.m., while food vendors with all those favorite fair foods will be on hand throughout the day with a tempting array of culinary delights.

The Fourth of July is one of seven holidays each year that bring out the flags in Redmond. Volunteers will gather early in the morning to put out more than 1,400 U.S. flags that originally flew over the capitol in Washington, DC. In fact, Redmond was declared “Flag City USA” by the U.S. Congress in 1999. The day’s fun culminates with the grand fireworks display, which is being sponsored by High Desert Aggregate and Paving. Mike Moore is the owner, and his company has generously sponsored this event since 2011, when there was talk of discontinuing the fireworks.

“It was important for him to keep the fireworks going” said Lisa Ziegler, business manager at HD Paving. “And to provide that for the community.”

The show begins at 10 p.m., with the fireworks launching from the fairgrounds. Many local families arrive early to enjoy a barbecue at the fairgrounds and stay there to watch the show. It’s the perfect way to celebrate our nation’s Independence Day: surrounded by bursts of color and light, and the close-knit community gathered together in their shared love for our country.

To register as a participant in the parade and to learn more about the theme, go to www.visitredmondoregon.com/4th-of-July. A full list of events taking place at the Old Fashioned July Fourth Celebration can be found at www.redmondjuly4th.org. Those interested in volunteering at that event can contact Katie Hammer at Katie.hammer@raprd.org.