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Patriotic vehicles of all kinds will roll through downtown Demorest on Tuesday to celebrate the Fourth of July. FILE
Demorest is ready for its annual showcase event, the Glorious Fourth celebration, on Tuesday afternoon, leading to fireworks in the evening.
The vendors will begin setup at noon and start selling wares around 2 p.m. The parade will begin at 4 p.m. with a children’s parade, followed by floats, classic cars and emergency vehicles guiding the grand marshals, Piedmont University President Marshall Criser and his wife Kimberly. There will be first and second place prizes awarded for best in show and best classic car, among others.
The festivities will center around Demorest Springs Park, and there will be additional parking available on the Piedmont campus for the first time in many years.
The Fly Betty Band will perform in the park from 6:30 p.m. until dark, when everyone will migrate up the hill to the park behind city hall for the fireworks display.
City Manager Mark Musselwhite said Demorest is in talks with Piedmont and the pyrotechnics provider to potentially move the operation back to the campus in 2024.
“That is our hope,” Musselwhite said of the future move. “We have to talk to the guys when they are here Tuesday and look at the trees, see how high we can shoot and so forth.”
Sarah Cooper, who helped spearhead the festival plans for the city, said shifting the event to later in the day worked well last year and was something they wanted to stick with.
“It’s tough especially if you have children to keep them down here all day,” Cooper said. “We’ll have tons of delicious food options, bouncy houses, a train ride, a mechanical bull … it really should be a great event.”
Demorest’s playground will be open, but children will need to be cautious of the broken slide for which the city is still awaiting parts. There will also be additional portable toilets added in the park and near city hall as well, with the park’s restrooms still under construction.
“We are looking forward to a beautiful Independence Day,” Demorest Mayor Jerry Harkness said. “It’s not too late to sign up for the parade, so we encourage anyone who wants to be a part of it to come out and celebrate with us.”
Baldwin event Saturday
The City of Baldwin will host a community picnic at 5 p.m. Saturday, July 1, at the downtown city park (“The Pit”) to get an early start on the Independence Day celebrations.
There will be food provided by the city and fireworks when it gets dark. Bring lawn chairs and blankets to enjoy the festivities.