Ashland plans July 4 festivities

ASHLAND — Ashland will celebrate Independence Day with four days of public events, including the fireworks on Wednesday July 3 and parade on Thursday, July 4.

From 4 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. on Wednesday, July 3, a Food Truck Festival will be held at the Town Ballfield on Main Street featuring food trucks from around the state, serving a wide variety of foods and desserts. Vertical Entertainment will sell tickets to a bouncehouse, a rock wall, bungee jumping, and other games. A free concert will feature Chris White, the Beagles, and Red Daisy Revival. 50/50 raffle tickets, and the traditional buttons and bracelets will be sold. At 9:30 p.m., the national anthem will be sung by Lucy Alexander, Blair Farris, and Kendall Perdue, and will be promptly followed by a grand fireworks display by Pyrotech.

On Independence Day itself, a pancake breakfast will be served at the Common Man on Main Street. The parade units will line up behind the Fire Station from 8 to 9:30 a.m. At 10 a.m., the parade will begin at the Fire Station and will continue along Main Street to the Ballfield. Parade honorees will include Grand Marshall of the Parade and Public Works Director Craig Moore, Mary Ruell Award winner Stacie Laauwe, and Boston Post Cane Holder Virginia Danforth.

In the afternoon, a cornhole tournament will be held at the ballfield. The Fourth of July Committee will serve a barbecue at 12:30 p.m. Play will begin at 1 p.m.

The movie “National Treasure” will be shown at 8:30 p.m. on Friday, July 5, at the ballfield.

A 5K foot race will be held on North Ashland Road, beginning at 9 a.m. on Saturday, July 6. The first 100 registrants will receive free race shirts. Medals will be awarded to the top three racers. A free Community Kickball Game will also be played at the ballfield on Saturday, starting at 1 p.m. The Ashland Community Church will serve a barbecue.

Brochures are now available that list the events and honor Parade Marshall Craig Moore and Mary Ruell Award winner Stacie Laauwe. The funds raised by the Fourth of July Committee at this year’s events and sales will support next year’s Fourth of July celebration.