VIDALIA — Fireworks will fill the sky in two community celebrations of American independence next week.

The Vidalia Beautification Committee along with other community organizations will present the second-annual Fourth of July festival Wednesday on the Vidalia Riverfront while Lake St. John residents in Ferriday will participate in the 26th-annual Lake St. John Flotilla and Blessing of the Boats at 2 p.m. Saturday, July 7.

Fourth of July celebration

Sabrina Doré, president of the Vidalia Beautification Committee, said organizers hope Wednesday’s Fourth of July celebration will be bigger and better than last year’s event, with extended hours, additional games, vendors and festivities.

The Fourth of July celebration will last from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Wednesday at the Vidalia Riverfront amphitheater with new activities happening every hour, she said.

The festival will offer something for everyone including a petting zoo with a requested donation of 50 cents or more to support Monterey 4-H members; a free health fair hosted by the Concordia Parish LSU Ag Center; adoptable pets; a blood drive; live music with local artists; and contests with prizes.

Doré said admission is free but food and raffles tickets will have fees and donations will be accepted. Attendees should come dressed in their best Independence Day outfits for a crowd-judged competition.

Doré said her personal favorite event is an all-day scavenger hunt.

“Every hour on the hour, we will be giving out clues for items hidden on the Riverfront,” she said.

Attendees will have four different chances to win a pack of four tickets to Blue Bayou Water Park in Baton Rouge.

The celebration will culminate with a fireworks display over the Mississippi River at dusk that can be viewed from either side of the bridge.

“One of the things that our community is seeking to do is to bring everything back to the days of old,” Doré said, “Where we all got out and celebrated together as one and where we knew our neighbors. The Mississippi River Bridge is not some thing to divide us. When I say community I mean the entire Miss-Lou community.”

26th-annual Lake St. John Flotilla and Blessing of the Boats.

At 2 p.m. Saturday, July 7, the 26th-annual Lake St. John Flotilla and Blessing of the Boats will take place in Ferriday.

The parade consists of recreational boats of all kinds, some decorated in red, white and blue and other themes. Viewing is best from the Spokane Fishing Resort.

Parade registration is open to “anything that floats and can keep up with parade speeds,” said the Flotilla chairman Donna Maroon.

Registration lasts from 9 a.m. to noon Saturday at the Spokane Fishing Resort and costs $10 per vessel.

Participants have the opportunity to win cash prizes, regardless of whether boats are decorated. Participants who decorate their boats, however, will have more opportunities to win prizes, including a large life ring that will be presented to the overall winner.

The parade will be led by Concordia Parish Sheriff Kenneth Hedrick and the 2018 Flotilla Grand Marshal Dave Pace — a long-time resident and supporter of Lake St. John and its preservation. Pace also owns several monument companies and donated the veterans monument at Memorial Park. Pace also donated a memorial for “Tripod,” a three-legged “city kitty” that lived for years at Natchez City Hall and died in 1983.

The Rev. John Pardue will bless all of the vessels as they set sail, wishing them a safe journey, Maroon said. KFNV 104.7 The River will broadcast the event live.

“It’s a fun event, the blessing is for a safe summer on the lake,” Maroon said. “They’ll have plenty of places to view the boats and fireworks and take pictures.”

Maroon said the lakeside fireworks show would begin at dusk after the parade.