Independence Day festivities are underway
Many west Tennesseans have already begun their Independence day celebrations, while others are still preparing for a day of fun on the actual holiday.
MILAN, Tenn — It has been a rainy Monday for some in west Tennessee, but that did not stop organizers over at Beech Lake from preparing for their big event Tuesday.
Also, community members in the city of Milan celebrated the holiday early with a movie in the park.
“(A) Big night in Milan and we’re really excited about it. We’ve had a lot of rain, but people are already coming out their excited about being out here tonight and we’re excited to have them and we plan a lot more,” said Milan Mayor B.W. Beasley.
The city of Milan celebrated the Fourth of July with a movie and fireworks at the city park. The Dudley Kizer VFW Post 4780 of Milan prepared hot dogs and hamburgers for those who attended.
“The Mayor of Milan and the city of Milan have been very helpful with the VFW,” Post Commander, Nicholas Slaughter said. “They reached out to us and asked if we would be interested in participating (Monday night), so we’re doing it as part of our community service.”
Slaughter said all proceeds will go towards the VFW.
Meanwhile, in Henderson County, organizers are preparing for the “Festival of the Lakes”.
“We have Miss Tennessee coming to kick us off with our music portion of our festival. She’ll be here to sing the National Anthem,” said Executive Director of the Henderson County Chamber of Commerce, Kim Douglass.
The free event kicks off beginning Tuesday at 8:30 a.m. with a fireworks show ending the night at 9 p.m. In between that time, there will be plenty to do.
“We have all kinds of food vendors anything from BBQ, hamburgers, hot dogs, polish sausage,” Douglass explained. “And we have zip lines this year and water slides so you can purchase a bracelet for $10 and play all day on the water slides and zip lines.”
Organizers said last year the “Festival of Lakes” brought out around 5,000 people. This year the city hopes to surpass that number by welcoming close to 10,000.
There will also be six teams competing in a BBQ cooking contest and live entertainment throughout the day.
