July Fest set for Saturday in Vina
It’s the biggest event of the year in Vina, and it’s coming this Saturday.
July Fest is an opportunity for friends and neighbors to enjoy a time of fun and fellowship, all while supporting the local Vina Fire & Rescue Squad. The rescue squad is the official host of the event, but funds raised support both groups.
“We’ve been doing it for 26 years,” said event coordinator Denise Rogers. “All the people who have moved away will come back for this event every year … We are a small community, and it’s a big thing we do once a year. A lot of people come back to just to visit. We’re all like family.”
The event includes live music along with a variety of vendors, including food and arts and crafts, and festivities will also feature a car show. Vendors will be onsite from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m., and country and gospel bands will take the stage from noon to 9 p.m.
Perhaps the greatest attraction is the “Draw Down,” held at 5:30 p.m., which awards the ultimate cash prize of $17,000 or a new vehicle – car, truck, tractor or 4-wheeler.
Tickets, of which there are only 325 total, cost $100. Rodgers said there are still a few tickets left but “they are going fast.” Tickets can be obtained at city hall, the bank or from any member of the rescue squad.
From 7-9 p.m., Breanna and Garrett Dean will cap off the musical entertainment.
The event concludes with a fireworks display at 9 p.m.
Festivities will begin at 8 a.m. with the 3rd Annual Vina July Fest 5K and 1-mile Fun Run, with registration at 6:30 a.m. Cost for the 5K is $25 per person, and overall male and female winners will receive tickets for the Draw Down. Fun Run Registration is $10 per person, and the race will start as soon as the 5K is completed.
Vina First Baptist Church will have a bean dinner, barbecue sandwiches and smoked bologna sandwiches and hotdogs, starting at 11 a.m. Cost for bean dinner will be $6. Barbecue sandwich plate is $6. Smoked bologna sandwich plates are $5. Hotdog plate will be $4.
Rodgers encouraged everyone to come out and enjoy the fun and fellowship.
