FONTANELLE — A schedule is due to be announced this week for the Independence Day celebration Fontanelle will host beginning July 3. The Fontanelle Enterprise Club also recently announced a theme for the celebration and grand marshals for the parade they have decided on using input from the community.
“We’re pretty excited,” said Enterprise Club representative Dianna Goetz. “We have quite a few things on our agenda. Fliers should be out this week with the schedule on it.”
The theme for the holiday is “Stronger Together, United Forever, A Place to Call Home.” It is two suggested themes put together, the second half being Fontanelle’s town motto, “A Place to Call Home.”
“We did the ‘stronger together’ because in today’s day and age, you have to stick together,” Goetz said.
Denny and Debbie Sickles have been selected as grand marshals of a parade that will begin 11 a.m. July 3.
“Denny was born and raised here, has been the fire chief for many years and worked at the lumber yard for just as long. Debbie has worked in home healthcare or at the nursing home around here for countless years. I think that being a nurse, being able to go into people’s homes in the last year, that has meant a lot to people,” Goetz said.
Junior grand marshals for the parade will be the 2020-21 Nodaway Valley girls basketball team, the first Wolverine team to have reached the state girls basketball tournament (Fontanelle made the state tournament in 1958 and Bridgewater-Fontanelle qualified again in 1981).
Goetz explained there will be a live band during the celebration, kids water fights and an emergency vehicle display courtesy of area first responders, a hands-on Ag for All exhibit, bounce houses, a tug of war contest, a hot dog eating contest, stage entertainment in the park, a pancake breakfast, fireworks and more during the Fourth of July. See a complete schedule in an upcoming newspaper.
Though the amount of volunteers involved in planning has been small but mighty, Goetz is eager for Fontanelle to put on a fun and successful Fourth of July.
“We’re small towns, so what we can get, we hope it’s the best,” Goetz said.