Fireworks, games, live entertainment and much more await you at Wake Forest’s 2017 Fourth of July Celebration. Now in its 44th year, this community extravaganza is Wake Forest’s most eagerly-anticipated summer-time event serving up two days’ worth of fun and excitement for the entire family.
The festivities get underway with the Fireworks Spectacular on Monday, July 3, at Wake Forest High School’s Trentini Stadium on Stadium Drive. Gates open at 5:30 p.m. and admission is $5 per person. Children age six and under are admitted free.
Advance tickets to the Fireworks Spectacular are now available for purchase online at WFJuly4th.com. Anyone who purchases a ticket online will receive a print at home ticket, which must be redeemed on the day of the event for a wristband at the red tent, located at the main gate.
Beginning Monday, June 12, advance tickets will also be available for purchase at the following area locations:
- Wake Forest Area Chamber of Commerce, 305 S. White St.
- The Wake Forest Weekly, 229 E. Owen Ave.
- Aloha Tan, 12223 Hampton Way Dr.
- All About Hair & Nails, 12223 Hampton Way Dr.
- Town & Country Hardware at Gateway Commons, 910 Gateway Commons Circle
- NC General Stores, 150 S. White St.
- For Old Times Sake Antiques, 223 S. White St.
- Wake Forest Renaissance Centre, 405 S. Brooks St.
As a special offer, buy four tickets in advance and get your fifth ticket free.
The Band of Oz, one of the southeast’s most popular beach music bands and a 1997 Beach Music Hall of Fame inductee, will again headline this year’s celebration. Other highlights will include Don Carrington’s Parachute Team and an unforgettable 20-minute fireworks display.
The fireworks show typically begins at dusk, but there is no official start time. Concessions, including hamburgers, hot dogs, popcorn, and snow cones will be available for purchase at the Fireworks Spectacular. A variety of food trucks will also be on site.
Picnic baskets and/or coolers are allowed but will be inspected before being permitted inside the stadium. Alcoholic beverages are strictly prohibited on the Wake Forest High School campus.
Handicap parking (by identification only) and regular parking are available on the school campus. Families may tailgate in the parking lot, but everyone that enters the school campus must be a paying spectator.
The revelry continues on Tuesday, July 4, with the Children’s Parade along North Main Street. Area youngsters are invited to hop on their bicycles and be a part of their very own “walking parade.” The lineup begins at 10 a.m. at the intersection of North Main Street and West Juniper Avenue, near the Wake Forest College Birthplace. The procession will get underway at 10:30 a.m. Participation in the Children’s Parade is free, but bicyclists are encouraged to wear their helmets.
The Independence Day festivities conclude at 11 a.m. with Arts & Games in the Park. Children of all ages are invited to create a variety of colorful arts and crafts projects inside the Wake Forest Community House, join in a slew of games and activities at Holding Park, and enjoy several giant inflatables at R.H. Forrest Field. The Wake Forest Community House and Holding Park are located at 133 W. Owen Ave., while Forrest Field is located at 123 W. Owen Ave.
The Children’s Parade and Art & Games in the Park are free and open to the public.
Volunteers are needed to perform a variety of roles during the Fireworks Spectacular and Art & Games in the Park. For more information, visit WFJuly4th.com or email WFJuly4th@gmail.com.
