Celebrating freedom
July 4 activities feature local entertainment

Shinice Evans,5, pauses among the hustle of people at the Fourth of July, Party In The Park Wednesday afternoon in Gallup. Thousands of people attended the event to celebrate Independence Day with music, food, games, and time with family and friends. Evans was at the party with her mother for the third year. [Photo by Daniel Zollinger/Independent]

By Zsombor Peter
Staff Writer

Fireworks exploded over the Gallup sky, marking the end to the Independence Day celebration Party In The Park held at the Gallup Sports Complex. Spectators honked their horns and gasped in awe as they watched the display. [Photo by Daniel Zollinger/Independent]

GALLUP — The city did not even exist when America's founding fathers signed their names to the Declaration of Independence. But that didn't stop hundreds of Gallup and area residents from flocking to the city's sports complex Wednesday to celebrate the country's birthday.

After a morning parade down Coal Avenue, the festivities moved to the Gallup Sports Complex, where local radio station KGAK hosted a full day of activities. Carnival games peppered rows of food and trinket vendors. Navajo youth and their elders shared a corner of the complex for the day's gourd dance. A steady lineup of local bands provided a nonstop soundtrack.

By the time a 20-minute fireworks show capped off the celebration just before 10 p.m., there was not a free parking space to be found from the complex to the Gallup Fitness Center.

KGAK advertising manager Eric Gonzales said the crowd looked bigger this year than last. He attributes most of the growth to a decision to fill the musical lineup strictly with local groups. Area favorites Stateline even agreed to reunite for one show.

"We kind of gave the people what they wanted," Gonzales said.

Those people included Rebecca Jacob.

"We come every year," Jacob said, watching her son and grandson take part in the gourd dance from her folding chair. By her side, her granddaughter struggled to keep a cotton stovepipe painted with the colors of the American flag atop her head while digging into a cup of flavored ice.

Steady cloud cover kept the festivities relatively cool, although an ominous patch of dark sky to the east threatened rain.

"We figured we were going to get washed out," Gonzales said.

In the end, though, the storm clouds did little more than drizzle the crowd with quick, light showers and kick up the occasional cloud of dust.

"Of all the years we've done this," Gonzales said, "this is the smoothest things have ever gone."