By Kim McDarison
A five-day Fourth of July festival in Whitewater will begin Friday, June 30, and run through Tuesday, July 4. This year, event-goers will find a bevy of activities designed to please young and old.
Friday
According to information provided on the “Whitewater Fourth of July Festival” website, Friday opens the festival with carnival midway rides and a “wristband session,” from 5 to 9 p.m. Wristbands cost $25 and can be used during posted wristband specials, otherwise, rides are ticket-based. Tickets and wristbands are available for purchase at booths situated within the carnival midway in Cravath Lakefront Park, 341 S. Fremont St. Midway rides are suppled by Christman Family Amusements.
An array of civic food vendors and a beer tent also will be available Friday. Hours of operation are 5 to 11 p.m.
Those interested in purchasing food and beverage items must first obtain tickets, also known as “festival dollars,” from a ticket or information booth. Tickets can be purchased individually at 50 cents each, or in sheets of 10 tickets, according to the festival website.
Live music will be performed by Marco Wence, from 5 to 7 p.m., followed by karaoke between 8 and 10 p.m.
Saturday
Saturday, the second day of the event, opens with a wristband session from noon to 4 p.m. Food vendors and the beer tent will open at noon and remain open until 11 p.m. During the afternoon, live music will begin with a performance from Irish Folk Music, taking place from 1 to 3 p.m., and a car show will get underway at 2 p.m. and run until 7 p.m. Music will continue with a performance from Wunderlich, between 5 and 7 p.m., after which Titan Fun Key will perform between 8 and 10:30 p.m. Fireworks are scheduled to begin at 10 p.m.
This year’s car show will include an awards ceremony planned to take place at 6:30 p.m. Cars receiving awards will have been selected by event-goers as “crowd favorites,” the website stated. The car show, as a festival component, is in its 38th year.
A story about last year’s car show is here: https://fortatkinsononline.com/70-vehicles-on-display-at-whitewaters-fourth-of-july-car-show/.
This year’s fireworks display is sponsored by the Coburn Company and DLK Enterprises, both of Whitewater. Fireworks are provided through Melrose Pyrotechnics, the website noted. Fireworks will be launched rain or shine over the Cravath lakebed.
Sunday
Sunday, dubbed “Family Day,” and sponsored by Generac, will begin with a wristband session, running from noon until 4 p.m., and food vendors will be in operation between noon and 6 p.m. A beer tent will not be available to event-goers on Sunday. The day also will include a petting zoo, complete with pony and camel rides, which are free, and available between noon and 4 p.m. The Miss Whitewater Pageant will be held between 4 and 6 p.m. A second wristband session will begin at 5 and run until 9 p.m.
A story about last year’s pony and camel rides, and petting zoo is here: https://fortatkinsononline.com/camel-lot/.
An 2022 story about the Miss Whitewater pageant is here: https://fortatkinsononline.com/miss-whitewater-pageant-registration-open-through-june-8/.
Monday
On Monday, only the carnival will be in operation, according to the website. Event organizer Lisa Dawsey Smith recently told Fort Atkinson Online that Monday is a work day for many, as well as the first day of summer school for students attending programming offered through the Whitewater Unified School District. Since the festival is manned primarily with volunteers, the Fourth of July Committee made a decision to operate the carnival only, with a wristband session offered between 5 and 9 p.m.
Tuesday
Tuesday marks the final day of the festival.
The day kicks off with the Whippet City Mile run beginning at 9:45 a.m., followed by the Fourth of July Parade, which begins at 10 a.m.
This year’s parade route begins from the parade’s staging area at Lincoln Elementary School on Prince Street, and moves north to the intersection of Prince and Main streets. It next continues east on Main Street, to the intersection of Main and Whitewater streets, and ends at the intersection of Whitewater and Fremont streets.
This year’s Grand Marshal is Terry Phelps, who, according to the website, “joined the Whitewater Volunteer Fire Department on July 5, 1973.”
After 50 years of service, he will be retiring this year.
The website notes that Terry’s father, Charles, was a 25-year veteran of the department and took his son on “many calls before he officially became a member.”
Terry was named Firefighter of the Year by the department in both 1982 and 1990, and Fire Officer of the Year in 2014. He was named a Home Town Hero by a Whitewater community group in 2022. He has served as a department captain for over 30 years and as a certified instructor at Gateway Technical College for 25 years, the website noted.
Photos from last year’s Whitewater Fourth of July Parade are here: https://fortatkinsononline.com/whitewater-fourth-of-july-parade-2022/.
Following the parade, in Cravath Lakefront Park, live music will be performed by the Steve Meisner Legacy Band from 2 to 4 p.m., followed by Whiskey Flats Trio, which will perform between 5 and 7 p.m. The Britins take the stage between 8 and 11 p.m.
Fireworks will commence over the Cravath lakebed at 10 p.m.
General information
According to the festival’s website, the committee’s mission is to “remember, respect and celebrate” the nation’s freedom and independence for “families, friends, community and (the) nation, while volunteering, organizing and working with other organizations and individuals to “create an exciting celebration for the Whitewater Community and surrounding areas.”
The event is designed to create a “prosperous festival” that benefits “patrons, service groups and local businesses,” the website reads.
An earlier story about the festival and its components, including some history, is here: https://fortatkinsononline.com/five-day-fourth-of-july-festival-downtown-whitewater-previews-2023-activities-and-some-nostalgia/.
The full Fourth of July website is here: https://whitewater4th.com/#schedule.
A map offers the location of Whitewater’s Cravath Lakefront Park, 341 S. Fremont St. The park serves as the primary location, including midway rides, music, food, beer tent and fireworks, of Whitewater’s five-day Fourth of July event.
A map shows the Whitewater Fourth of July parade route. The parade is scheduled to take place Tuesday, July 4, at 10 a.m.
A cluster of mini cars, operated by Zor Shriners, enters the intersection of Main and Fremont streets, Whitewater, during last year’s Fourth of July parade. The cars won “Best of Parade” in the parade competition for floats and entries. The cars are slated as among entries in this year’s parade, which will be held Tuesday, July 4, at 10 a.m. File photo/Kim McDarison
Harry and Cindee Lenius, Watertown, display their 1957 Chevy Bel Air. The vehicle was among 70 participating last year in the 37th Annual Whitewater Fourth of July Car Show and a recipient of one of the show’s five People’s Choice awards. This year, the show will be held Saturday in a parking lot adjacent to Cravath Lakefront Park between 2 and 7 p.m. An awards ceremony is slated to be held at 6:30 p.m. File photo/Kim McDarison.
Petting zoo and camel ride operator Shayne Rigden leads a camel while an exuberant rider Dennis Fajardo expresses his excitement. The ride, along with pony rides and a petting zoo were offered free of charge last year during the Whitewater Fourth of July festival. The animals and rides are slated to return this year. They will be made available Sunday between noon and 4 p.m. in Cravath Lakefront Park. File photo/Tom Ganser.
Arriving last year for a camel ride are Junior Miss Whitewater Jaylynn Traxler, seated, from left, and Little Miss Whitewater Haley Gutierrez, along with Teen Miss Whitewater Lydia Bols, standing, from left, and Miss Whitewater Jordyn Damhorst. The young women were crowned during last year’s pageant. This year, the Miss Whitewater Pageant will be held Sunday, from 4 to 6 p.m., in Cravath Lakefront Park. File photo/Tom Ganser.
A train moves through Cravath Lakefront Park as the midway, during last year’s Whitewater Fourth of July festival, is in full swing. File photo/Kim McDarison.
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