July 2019: All People/Freedom (July 4^th)

All People/Freedom (July 4^th)

Celebrate freedom with your fellow Missourians at events held throughout the state this July:

Western Missouri

• In honor of our Independence Day, come join the Kansas City Zoo for its annual Red, White, and Zoo celebration. Red, White, and Zoo day gives the Kansas City Zoo the opportunity to educate guests about enrichment and animal care and to have a good time with the animals. This special event takes place on June 29, June 30, and July 4. Active and retired military individuals receive free admission.

• The City of Independence’s annual Independence Day Celebration will once again take place on July 3. In partnership with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, join the City of Independence at 937 West Walnut St. for a great night of free family fun. Activities include concerts by Red Head Express, an American country music band consisting of four sisters, and the Spirit of Independence Concert Band. This special event concludes with a fireworks display at 9:30 p.m. For more information, please visit online.

• KC Riverfest is a premier Independence Day celebration in the region. Located at beautiful Berkley Riverfront from 3 to 10 p.m., come celebrate the Fourth of July with the best fireworks show in the region, plus two stages of music, including a performance from the United States Air Force Band of Mid-America’s Jazz Ensemble. This special event also includes family-friendly entertainment and activities, including a kid’s scavenger hunt, kid’s activity tent, an abundance of food and beverage vendors, and a cornhole tournament. For more information or to view a schedule for the event, please visit online.

• The Kansas City Air Show returns to the Heart of America on July 6 and 7. Featuring the U.S. Navy Blue Angels, arguably the world’s most famous performance jet team, this two-day event will feature world-class aerobatic performances, military jet demonstrations, and thrilling entertainment for the whole family. The Kansas City Air Show will be hosted at Charles B. Wheeler Downtown Airport. Tickets are available at www.kcairshow.org. 

Central Missouri

• Jefferson City’s annual 4^th of July celebration, Salute to America, is not one to be missed. Featuring the largest fireworks display in Central Missouri, this event fills the Jefferson City downtown festival district with carnival rides, a massive parade, concerts, beer gardens, car shows, and more. For more information or to view a schedule of events, please visit online.

• The City of Columbia’s 67^th Annual Fourth of July celebration, Fourth of July Fire in the Sky, takes place beginning at 6:30 p.m. Presented by Columbia Insurance Group and KOMU 8 and coordinated by Columbia Parks and Rec, this special event features of variety of activities, entertainment, and a fireworks display. Entertainment includes the Kansas City Street Band, the Banastre Tarleton Band, Boone Howlers, and Burnin’ Down the House. For more information, to view a schedule of events, or to view tips on having an enjoyable and safe event, please visit online.

• Join The Missouri Symphony Orchestra for Patriotic Pops and celebrate everything America with selections ranging from Sousa Marches to the American Musical Theater. Bring your own flag to wave or just sit back and look at the ones we have all over the stage. Sing your favorite American anthems and salute our armed forces with a presentation by the VFW Color Guard. This concert is a popular tradition in the Hot Summer Nights Music Festival. Please visit online to reserve your tickets today.

Eastern Missouri

• Fair Saint Louis is an event produced by St. Louisans for St. Louisans and their guests celebrating our nation’s independence each Fourth of July. The Fair typically hosts hundreds of thousands of attendees listening to fantastic music, playing in the Festival Zone, checking out new products in the Interactive Zone, and, of course, being “wowed” by the nationally recognized fireworks displays each evening – all for free. Please visit online for a schedule of events. For general inquiries or vendor opportunities, please contact Jenna Todoroff at 314-434-3434 or info@fairsaintlouis.org.

• Webster Groves Community Days is an annual event to celebrate the Fourth of July holiday. The Citizen’s Committee for Community Days organizes all of the activities for the event. The Webster Groves Lions Club also holds its annual carnival and barbecue charity fundraiser during the celebration. All activities (aside from the carnival and barbecue) are free and funded through donations from businesses, organizations, and the citizens of Webster Groves. Please visit online or call 314-963-5600 for more information.

• Join together in Marshfield on Thursday, July 4, for the 140^th Annual Independence Day Parade. The theme for this year's parade is Jailhouse Rock. This celebration began in 1879 and remains the oldest, continuous annual celebration west of the Mississippi River. The earliest celebrations were composed largely of local families traveling by foot, horseback, and wagons to a large grove north of town to enjoy the day with friends and neighbors. Although many years have passed, family, friends, and neighbors still travel to Marshfield to enjoy this Independence Day celebration, eat a corn dog or sandwich from one of the many food vendors, and have an ice-cold lemonade or soda pop, similar to those early celebrations. Register online to participate in this year’s Independence Day Parade and Celebration. 

• The City of Branson invites you to attend its Independence Day celebration, with the Traditional Picnic and Carnival beginning at noon. Following the picnic and carnival, The Hughes Music Show presents an Independence Day show like no other. For more information regarding this special event or to book your tickets, please visit online.

Lucille Bluford Day

Lucile Bluford Day is celebrated across Missouri on July 1, per a 2016 measure signed into law that encourages residents to "appropriately observe the day in honor of Lucile Bluford, a journalist and civil rights activist who successfully sued to end segregation in the University of Missouri journalism program and whose long and distinguished career at The Kansas City Call contributed to it[s] becoming one of the largest and most important Black newspapers in the nation.”

• A former television reporter, anchor, news director, and documentary producer who founded and heads the Washington, D.C.-based SRB Communications, Sheila Brooks, has authored a new book: Lucile H. Bluford and the Kansas City Call: Activist for Social Justice, which recounts Bluford’s fight for admission into the University of Missouri’s graduate journalism program and assess her dual role as a journalist and advocate for the women’s and civil rights movements.