Celebrate the 4th of July in style

Wanda English Burnett
Editor

Ripley County residents won’t have to drive far to find fabulous fireworks and festivities to celebrate the Fourth of July this weekend.

The 10th annual Ripley County Chamber Night “United We Stand” will offer a variety of entertainment for the entire family at the Ripley County Fairgrounds Park in Osgood Friday night, July 2.

The event will get underway at 4 p.m. with flea markets, crafters, antiques, food and ice cream booths. There will be a bicycle parade sponsored by the Osgood Beautification Committee. There will also be various local groups performing music until the fireworks are set off at dark.

The fireworks at the Osgood event are sponsored by the Gilmore & Golda Reynolds Foundation and will be set off by the Osgood Volunteer Fire Department.

For more information or to rent a booth, call the chamber office at 689-6654.
On Friday, July 2 there will be an Ice Cream social at the Milan First Baptist Church from 4:30 to 7:00 p.m. to kick off Milan’s weekend of celebrations.

Saturday, July 3 and Sunday, July 4 a Party in the Park event will take place at the Daren Baker Memorial Park in Milan.

Festivities in the park will include games, face painting, food booths, corn hole tournaments, youth baseball tournament, and beer gardens. There will be a silent auction and split the pot throughout the event.

Live music will be offered with The Renegades, Splurge, Rural Route 2, Inner Soul, 3 Day Rule and Skallywags performing.

Booth space is still available. You can email angelabeck95@hotmail.com.

Saturday morning, July 3, an all-you-can-eat breakfast will be offered from 7:30 to 10:00 a.m. at the Milan Methodist Church. This will be followed by the Milan Lions Club Parade at 11:00 a.m. where Mike Alloway will be the Grand Marshall.

Alloway is described as being a “beloved fixture in the Milan community and beyond.” He has been involved with the Milan Volunteer Fire Department since May of 1992 and is also a First Responder. He has been elected President of the department several times and currently holds the rank of Lieutenant.

The son of Lucille “Cindy” Alloway and the late Walter Alloway, Mike graduated, and has lived and worked in Milan all of his life. He graduated from Milan High School in 1982 and obtained a Bachelors of Business Administration in 1986 from Indiana State University.

Alloway and his wife, Diane (Laws) were married in 1987 and have four children: Lacee, Kady, Kirby, and Logan. The girls graduated from Milan High School and are currently attending Ivy Tech. Logan will be a freshman at Milan High School.

Starting in the car business in 1988 with Chris Volz Motors, Alloway is known by a lot of people. He is now the General Manager of Whitewater Motors, formerly known as Baker Motor Company.

Organizers of the parade say Milan is proud to have someone of Alloway’s character in Milan. He is intensely dedicated to the fire department and any community endeavor in the town he loves.

Alloway and his wife, Diane, will lead the parade that is open for anyone to participate in. There is same day registration with the parade lining up at 9:30 a.m. at the Milan High School. Trophies will be given out for the top three float entries. There is no registration charge.

From 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. the Milan Volunteer Fire Department will be serving Pulled Pork Dinners.

You are invited to visit the Milan ’54 Museum and review the exciting new changes.
A spectacular display of fireworks will be shown at 10:00 p.m. on Saturday. The rain date for the fireworks is July 4.

Saturday night another spectacular fireworks display will be shown for those who want to visit the Versailles State Park. The display will be at dark with free entry to the park that evening. Bring your lawns chairs or blankets and stretch out under the stars with nature to see the colorful bursts of fireworks that will be set off by the Versailles Volunteer Fire Department.

If you’re celebrating the Fourth of July at home this year, be sure to check out articles inside today’s paper about firework safety.