Liberty Fest
Previously selected as one of the top ten places to be in America on the 4th of July by CNN and the USA Today, and a designated state centennial event, Edmond will be hosting LibertyFest 2007 in a weeklong celebration, June 28 through July 4.
"This is a great event that is always well attended. The first LibertyFest began in the 1920's in Stephenson Park, when they served watermelon and had potato sack races," said June Cartright, head of marketing for LibertyFest. "We feel that it is a great honor to keep one of the oldest events in Edmond going."
This year's events begin with a concert in Mitchell Hall Theatre on the UCO campus at 7:30 p.m. on June 28. The theme of the concert is "celebration" and will feature a mixture of light classics, marches and patriotic music.
On Saturday, June 30, the seventh annual car show will be held at the UCO parking lot on 2nd street. A wide range of cars from Model T's to Edsels to Corvettes and Mustangs are expected to be present at the show.
"The car show is always one of the coolest events," said Cartright. "We are going to have a lot of participants this year. It is just a wonderful, wonderful event."
Later on Saturday, the Miss Edmond and Miss LibertyFest Scholarship pageant will be held at 7:00 p.m. at Mitchell Hall. Candidates will compete for Miss LibertyFest, teen competition and little sister.
Kitefest will take over Mitch Park on Saturday and Sunday, June 30- July 1, and will include activities ranging from team demonstrations by experienced "kiters" to kite making and candy drops for children.
Downtown will be the location for the big event, A Taste of Edmond, on Sunday, July 1 from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. and will include booths filled with foods from various restaurants from around the Edmond area. The cost is $10 for adults; children under ten are free. The event is a fund-raiser for LibertyFest and helps assure that the festival will have the necessary funding to continue for years to come.
"Taste of Edmond has been going on for a number of years now," said Cartright. "The local restaurants donate their time and their food. We are always thankful for their time and we know this is one of the things that keep us going."
The road rally, which is a scavenger hunt on wheels, will take place on Sunday, July 1. The event is set for noon with contestants meeting at Festival Market Place, west of Broadway, on 1st Street. Instructions are given to contestants as they leave the launch site. Each participant will be directed all around the city, answering questions as they go. Prizes will be awarded to the top ten finishers.
A new event this year will be "Chalk it up for LibertyFest," a drawing contest using a variety of chalk to express artwork under the Festival Market Place pavilion. There are four categories for the event-most artistic, most colorful, best use of space and best overall "chalker."
LibertyFest will conclude on the 4th of July with a parade downtown and other activities. Over 50,000 spectators are expected to watch bands, floats, marching groups, antique cars, clowns, Shriners and more on the 1.5 mile parade route.
From 5:00-9:30 p.m. the UCO campus will host Parkfest, which will include activities for children such as Toddler Time Tent, the Kingdom Moon Bounce, the Pirate Ship Playland, Jurassic Playland and the Clown Slide. There will also be a rock wall, a saber-toothed tiger slide and an incredible hulk obstacle course.
The festivities will conclude with the largest fireworks show in the Oklahoma City metro area. Attendees are encouraged to bring lawn chairs and blankets to the UCO campus and enjoy the show. The fireworks will begin around 10:00 p.m.
"We buy more fireworks than a lot of much bigger cities across the country," said Cartright. "Of course this is one of the largest firework shows in the state and our committee works very hard all year long to make this happen."
For more information and a complete schedule of times, events and locations, please go www.libertyfest.com.
