A number of Independence Day celebrations are planned to observed this year's July 4 celebration.
Kicking off a weekend of festivities is tonight's "Veteran's Appreciation Night," will get under way at 5:30 p.m. on the Plaza Principal stage behind the Visitor's and Convention Bureau.
Free desserts and drinks will be served inside the visitor's center, and there will be patriotic music, free U.S. flags, vintage and classic cars and late-night shopping until 8 p.m. downtown.
Car enthusiasts, including car club members, antique car and motorcycle owners, will cruise into downtown between 5 and 8 p.m. For information, call 560-2228.
Also tonight is the traditional lighted boat parade at Lake Nacogdoches.
Participants are encouraged to decorate their boats in lighted patriotic theme and meet at the dam at 8:45 p.m. to participate in a floating processional around the lake shoreline.
Many lake residents will decorate their boat docks with lights and red, white and blue colors.
For questions or information, call 560-9594.
The town of Timpson will celebrate July 4 with Frontier Days, which begins at 10 a.m. Saturday and continues until midnight in SoSo Park near downtown. For information, call 936-254-2603.
The first ever Christian Battle of the Bands begins at noon Saturday in Festival Plaza in downtown Nacogdoches.
The winning band will open at Freedom Fest, the annual Fourth of July celebration, Saturday night.
Encore Music will donate six hours of recording studio time for the winner and four hours for the "Best Original Artist" award, and Sound Tech in Lufkin will donate an acoustic guitar to "The Best Guitarist." Prizes will also be awarded to "Best Vocalist" and "Best Crowd Pleaser."
Entry fee for the competition is $25 and allows the bands to perform three songs.
Culminating the weekend fun, Brookshire Brothers Freedom Fest will once again offer all the sights, sounds and tastes of an old-fashioned, community-wide Independence Day celebration from 5 until 9 p.m. Saturday in Festival Plaza in downtown Nacogdoches.
Families can enjoy festival food, children's activities and live music, including Halcyon Five, The Keith Whitton Band and the first-place winner of the Christian Battle of the Bands competition. The evening will culminate in a fireworks display sponsored by the Nacogdoches Jaycees beginning 30 minutes after dark. Admission is free.
"Freedom Fest has something for the whole family to enjoy from excellent food to show-stopping fireworks," said Ashleigh Endicott of the Nacogdoches Convention and Visitors Bureau. "What better way to celebrate our nation's independence than to share it with family and friends at a safe and fun patriotic festival."
Those attending can bring lawn chairs and blankets, coolers and picnic baskets, but glass bottles and alcoholic beverages are not allowed. New this year is the "Star Spangled Burger" cook-off sponsored by Brookshire Brothers. First place prize is a Char Griller Smokin' Pro and the title of "Burger Master."
The children's area will include a dunking booth, slides, moonwalks and trike races. Tickets for the inflatables are $1 each, or a $15 armband is also available for unlimited play.
Fireworks can also be viewed from University Mall, Williamsburg Plaza, the downtown square, Nacogdoches County Courthouse, Coy Simms Softball Park, Brookshire Brothers on South Street and Hotel Fredonia.
For information, call 569-3449 or 564-7351.
The town of Tenaha will host an Independence Day celebration at 8 p.m. Saturday at Tiger Stadium. Gates open at 7 p.m and the night's festivities include live music and a fireworks display.
