ELLY GRIMM
• Leader & Times
The 4th of July holiday is less than one month away, which means preparations are currently under way for Liberal’s annual 4th of July parade.
The 2024 4th of July parade will start at 9:30 a.m. Thursday, July 4, and the route will again start on Trail Street, move north, and end at Light Park on 11th Street. This is the third year for the parade, and in order to make it as big as possible, coordinators are seeking float entries.
“Having a float is a great way to highlight your organization or business, or maybe even your candidacy,” coordinator Earl Watt said. “This is an election year, so what better way to spread the word to voters than being in a 4th of July parade? So we do hope to see a lot of candidates involved. It's a great way to highlight your business or organization and be seen by a lot of people in the community, so build a float that shows not only what your business/organization is, but also your patriotism and your love of the U.S. and the Liberal community.”
Watt said this year’s festivities should be entertaining for everyone.
“The major difference for this year is there won't be a day in the park like last year, there just wasn't enough time to get all of that put together and organized, but the parade will still happen as planned. This will be the third year for the parade, and we're only two years away from celebrating the 250th anniversary of the U.S. becoming a country, so we're building up to that,” Watt said. “The theme for this year is 'Stars and Stripes,' so we'd love to see people highlighting the flag and playing that up so the floats look all bright and patriotic. The past two years have been phenomenal, and we had 50 floats participating last year alone. The parade started two years ago thanks to the Sons of the American Revolution and other community partners, and to have seen that kind of growth already is just amazing, and we hope to possibly beat that this year. It's free to participate, it's free to come and be a spectator, and it's a great way to start the day of the 4th of July.”
With the float entries, Watt said he and the other coordinators hope to see a wide variety.
“A big draw for people is always the classic cars. We're going to be announcing this year's Grand Marshal within the next couple weeks. We always love to see the classic cars though, and we have some people in town who have cars that are basically works of art,” Watt said. “We also have people who put a lot of time and effort into their floats in every parade, whether it's the Christmas parade or this one, so we're expecting that again this year. If you're a local team or group, put something together and put a bit of a spotlight on yourselves – I know we've had the local wrestling group and some of the soccer teams participate, so we'd love to see that. People love to start their 4th of July with a parade so for this year, we want to see people outdo themselves, whether it's with the classic cars or the floats that really highlight the parade theme, because it's amazing to see what people come up with.”
Any individual or group/business/organization wanting to enter a float would need to call the Leader & Times office at (620) 626-0840 or email
“We'll be staging everything on Trail Street along the railroad tracks. While we will get you in the lineup if you show up that day, it really helps if people sign up beforehand so we have a more firm idea of how to prepare and what to expect,” Watt said. “We're really excited, and we look forward to having another very big and bright and patriotic parade like last year. We're building up to a very special 4th of July in 2026, which marks a full quarter of a millennium, so that will be a huge deal. We want to keep this going for the community, and we look forward to seeing all the floats and seeing people lining Kansas Avenue that morning.”
Even with the parade almost a month away, Watt said there is already a lot of excitement building up in the community.
“I've already been contacted by the Rotary Club saying they would be happy to help with the judging, so that's already in the works. We've already also gotten phone calls from people asking what this year's theme is, which really surprised me and made me come up with the theme rather on the spot, because that hadn't quite been finalized yet,” Watt said. “There's clearly some interest already for this year, and that means people are excited about the festivities and want to be part of everything. There are a few minor aspects we're a little behind the 8-ball on, but we're working hard on all of that to make sure this year's parade ends up going well.”
With that in mind, Watt said he hopes to see a big, bright parade for this year’s 4th of July holiday.
“We had a huge response last year and the year before, and I think we'll just continue to grow because when you host something for the first time, it can be kind of a toss-up in regard to what the response will be. But we were super surprised by the response that first year, and that spurred people to sign up to participate last year,” Watt said. “We're already getting phone calls from people, so people are already making plans. Last year, we lined up everyone along Trail Street and then had to kick some off to the side streets because that space was filling up with entries. No matter what you want to enter, if you want to be part of the parade, this is a great chance to do that. And again, with this being an election year, I expect to see some candidates out and about and highlighting their campaigns, and when better to do that than the 4th of July? We do expect to see participation keep growing. With parades, it's not like you're standing in line for a ride at a theme park and then you're finished, there's more anticipation and people are thinking 'I can't wait to see what comes down the street next!' With parades, more is better, and it certainly doesn't detract from anything having more cars or more floats, etc. All of that just adds to the overall event. Just get in touch with us and let us know what you want to do, and we'll get you in. It doesn't cost anything, it's a great way to highlight your business/organization/civic group, etc., so come and celebrate with the community as we commemorate the 4th of July. It's a parade for everyone, and that's a cornerstone of the U.S. as far as everyone getting a chance.”
