Oakville to host annual Independence Day celebration

By Allen Leister The Daily World • June 30, 2022 1:30 am
Photo Courtesy of Oakville Chamber of Commerce From fresh cooked food to homemade goods, vendors will be lined up throughout Oakville for the Independence Day celebration on Saturday, July 2, 2022. One of the most anticipated vendors will be the local beer garden sponsored by Talking Cedar Brewery, Distillery, and Restaurant.
Photo Courtesy of Oakville Chamber of Commerce From fresh cooked food to homemade goods, vendors will be lined up throughout Oakville for the Independence Day celebration on Saturday, July 2, 2022. One of the most anticipated vendors will be the local beer garden sponsored by Talking Cedar Brewery, Distillery, and Restaurant.

As America’s most renowned holiday, Independence Day, is just on the horizon, cities across the country are prepping for the festivities. For cities in Grays Harbor County, anticipation, as well as planning, can be seen everywhere regardless of how big the city might be, especially for one city in East County.

Oakville is set to host its Independence Day celebration on July 2. The event, which is being organized by the Oakville Chamber of Commerce, will bring a little bit of everything to the table as some of the festivities planned will include a parade, car show, vendors, a beer garden, and live music among other things.

Roberta Wilkinson, who serves as the President of the Oakville Chamber of Commerce, said she’s anticipating a very excited crowd this year given the relaxing of pandemic restrictions and hopes to give the decades-old tradition some family-friendly flair.

“I think this year’s event has everyone excited. Last year was a wonderful event, but was somewhat limited in scope because we didn’t know if it would even take place due to the pandemic,” Wilkinson said. “The Oakville celebration has been going on since the 1950s and we want to keep up the exciting flair of Oakville’s signature event for the whole family to enjoy.”

Wilkinson went on to say the theme of this year’s celebration is “Hat’s off for Freedom,” a symbol of gratitude for the people who serve the Oakville community in multiple facets. The parade, which runs through the city of Oakville, will be accompanied by a Royalty Court of children from the community selected for their service to the city.

When asked about what separates this year’s event from previous years, Wilkinson noted the return of live music will be the most interesting in terms of how the community approaches the celebration.

“One thing that we can bring back is live music. We didn’t have that for the last couple of years due to the pandemic, but I think that the city will be happy to have it back. We’re also happy that a local band, The Pleasure Hounds, will be the ones to give the festival some creative music from classic rock to rhythm and blues,” Wilkinson said.

The celebration, which is normally held on the field by Oakville High School, is now being held between Center and Allen streets due to construction on the school grounds.

The Oakville Independence Day celebration will commence at 11 a.m. Saturday, July 2, with the start of the parade and will continue into the day with the car show and live music from the Pleasure Hounds from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.

For more information, people are encouraged to contact Wilkinson at 253-227-5614 or by email at OakvilleChamberCommerce@gmail.com.