Flyovers mark Fourth as local communities celebrate nation’s independence

News-Register file photo: Youth will gather at Wascher Elementary in Lafayette at 9:30 to decorate their bikes before peddling through the annual parade starting at 10:30 p.m.

Fighter jets will fly over McMinnville and Willamina Saturday In celebration of Independence Day and America's 250th birthday.

F-15s from the Portland Air National Guard Base will be doing flyovers at numerous places in Oregon and Washington.

The planes will swoosh over the Willamina Old Fashioned Fourth of July Festival at 11:57 a.m. They will fly over McMinnville at 12:07.

A flyover also is scheduled at St. Paul, where the annual rodeo is taking place, at 11:27 a.m. Saturday.

The planes likely be seen and heard over other Yamhill County cities as they travel at an altitude of 1,000 feet over the area, as well.

Annual Fourth of July events in Yamhill County will be joined this year by one-off celebrations in observance of America’s 250th Independence Day.

There will be two communitywide celebrations in McMinnville.

At the Yamhill County Fairgrounds, nonprofit We Are MAC will host “Saturday in the Park — America 250” from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Admission is free.

Second Winds Concert Band will open the stage events with patriotic music. Bands performing through the day include Tuesday String Band, Second Time Refined, Mayra Sandoval, Second Winds and The Little Big Band. Uncle Sam (Zach Martin) will conduct interviews with Thomas Jefferson and Abraham Lincoln (portrayed by Tod Butterfield).

Family games will include a scavenger hunt, corn hole, bingo, bounce houses and carnival games. Food and beverages will also be available for sale. There will not be fireworks following the event.

Progressive Yamhill will host a midday potluck, “Democracy’s dying but these burgers are frying,” from noon to 2 p.m. at Ed Grenfell Park. Participants are encouraged to bring a dish to share, including serving utensils, along with chairs, blankets, drinks and flatware.

The event will also include a food drive for Unidos.

The city of Newberg partnered with Northwest Christian Church, 2315 Villa Road, to organize a celebration of the milestone day. The free event will last from 4 to 10 p.m. and feature live music, a dedicated kids zone and free hot dogs and chips. Local food trucks will be selling other items. The evening will culminate with a large-scale fireworks show.

The Carlton Business Association is organizing a Red, White, Run 5K and Firecracker Fun Run for 8 a.m. Saturday, July 4 in Carlton.

Wear red, white and blue, as prizes will be awarded to the best dressed. The event also includes BBQ and fireworks.

Annual events return with extra festivities for the Semisesquicentennial.

Willamina’s Old Fashioned Fourth of July will begin at 7 a.m. with the Kiwanis Breakfast at the Willamina High School cafeteria. Breakfast lasts until 11 a.m. Registration for a 5K is at 7:15 a.m. at the Willamina Elementary School, a flag raising will occur at 9 a.m. at the LDS Church.

The annual logging show opens at 10 a.m. at the West Valley Community Campus, a car show (registration 9 a.m. to noon) and a horseshow tournament (registration 9:30 a.m.).

Arm wrestling will take center stage at Garden Spot Park, with weigh-ins from 8 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. The first match is at noon.

This year’s celebration will include an Air National Guard flyover between 11 a.m. and noon. The jets will fly out of the southeast, over Main Street and then toward Sheridan.

The Willamina Museum will be open, and R&N Studio on Polk Street will host the Thornhill Art Show 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Coyote Joe’s will transform its parking lot into a beer garden and sell food.

Live music at the community campus will last from 7:30 p.m. until dusk, when the national anthem will sound and the 73rd annual fireworks show will commence. For more information, visit facebook.com/Willamina4thofJuly.

In Dayton, the third annual Stars and Stripes Community Firework Show will be at 10 p.m., Friday, July 3. The show will follow an Independence Day edition of Dayton Friday Nights, from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at Courthouse Square Park. The fireworks will be launched behind the Dayton Post Office.

The Lafayette Fourth of July celebration has grown throughout the years and starts with a pancake breakfast from 7 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. at the fire hall.

Lafayette’s bike parade registration begins at 9 a.m. at Wascher Elementary School. Supplies to decorate bikes will be available and prizes will be awarded for the top three riders. The parade will begin at 10:30 a.m., concluding at Joel Perkins Park, where the celebrations will continue.

The park will be filled with vendors, an inaugural car show, kids’ activities, live music, mule rides, a hot dog eating contest and a free hot dog lunch provided by the Lafayette Community Church.

Judging for the Freedom Bake-Off is at noon.

For more information or to register for the car show or bake sale or to be a vendor, email 1846LCAT@gmail.com to contact the Lafayette Community Activities Team.