July 4th celebration set in East Brewton

Published 9:44 am Wednesday, June 27, 2012

In just a week East Brewton’s Fort Crawford Park will be teeming with games, singers, ducks, food, drinks and revelers as the city’s annual July 4th celebration is held.

East Brewton Mayor Terry Clark said the celebration will begin at 9 a.m. and will be a day filled with fun for the entire family.

“We’re geared up and ready for another great celebration,” Clark said. “We have plenty of good, wholesome entertainment and plenty of activities to keep everyone in the family busy enjoying the day.”

The day’s events will begin with a spades tournament at 9 a.m. at the East Brewton Civic Center leading up to the popular duck race at 6:30 p.m. with a fireworks finale at 9:30 p.m.

“The tournament is becoming more and more popular,” Clark said. “We have some great prizes for the winners in all of our events and we’re expecting a good time for everyone. We always have a great turnout for our bingo session. Folks who want to play need to get in early to make sure they get a seat.”

The duck race, set to begin at 6:30 p.m., will see cash prizes to the top the duck-holders in the race.

“We have plenty of ducks left for the race,” Clark said. “Ducks can be purchased up until 5:30 p.m. on the day of the race. We seem to have more and more interest for this race every year. With cash prizes on the line, people usually buy more than one duck to increase their chances of winning.”

Clark said cash prizes for the duck race are $50 for third place, $100 for second place and $200 for the winning duck. Ducks are $5 each and can be purchased at East Brewton City Hall up to July 3 or at the concession stand at Fort Crawford Park on the day of the race.

The bingo session begins at 11 a.m. with a horseshoe tournament set to begin at 4 p.m., Clark said.

For the younger crowd, water slides will be put into operation beginning at 4 p.m. leading up to opening performances on the Fort Crawford Stage.

Performances will begin at 5 p.m. with Misty Joyner acting as mistress of ceremonies for the entertainment portion of the festivities.

Melissa Cosey and Kevin Adams will be kicking off the entertainment at 5 p.m. and will be followed by Keri McCall at 5:30 p.m. Lois Crenshaw will take the stage from 6 to 6:30. Misty Joyner will be singing at 7 p.m. followed by Holly Wyatt.

The headline group, High Horse, will be taking the stage at 8 p.m. and will entertain until the beginning of the fireworks display planned for 9:30 p.m.

“We are happy to be able to get High Horse back for the celebration this year,” Clark said. “They have been well received and really do a good job.”

Clark said the fireworks display planned for the finale of the day has been made possible by contributors from around the area and the hard work of city staff.

“We’re planning a great display this year with the fireworks,” Clark said. “We’ve had some great folks step up financially that has helped us provide funds for a really good fireworks show.”

Clark said the family-friendly event will be an all-inclusive event requiring revelers only to show up.

“We will have plenty of food, drinks, entertainment, fun for the kids — just about anything you could want for a good July 4th celebration,” Clark said. “The park will be open and folks can bring a lawn chair and enjoy the day in East Brewton.”