With Independence Day just around the corner on Saturday, July 4, Thurston and Lewis county communities are preparing to host their annual patriotic celebrations — which, this year, are also a part of America250, a nationwide collaborative celebration marking the country’s 250th birthday.
Along with the traditional fireworks shows, other events including fun runs, time capsule dedications, parades, live music and more will be happening. Some events are starting this weekend ahead of the national holiday.
If you know of another America250 or Independence Day event coming up and would like it to be added to the online version of this story, email event information to owen@chronline.com.
The following is a list of dates, times and locations for America250 Independence Day events coming up in the region:
Oakville
In Oakville, the community’s annual Independence Day parade is titled “Cheers to 250 Years,” and will be held on Saturday, June 27, starting at 11 a.m. going down U.S. Highway 12 through the community.
Prior to the parade, a pancake breakfast will be served at the Grays Harbor Fire District 1 Station 1 building, located at 108 E. Main St. in Oakville, from 8 to 10 a.m.
Coinciding with the parade, community members are also holding the Scoot the Route Car Show near Oakville High School between South School and South Park streets from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Food and craft vendors will be available throughout the car show, which also features a special kids zone and a Talking Cedar beer garden. These events are organized by the Oakville Chamber of Commerce.
For more information, follow the Oakville Chamber on its Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/OakvilleCoC or call the chamber at 360-930-9256.
Yelm
The Yelm Chamber of Commerce is organizing Yelm Prairie Days Parade 2026 on Saturday, June 27, starting at 9 a.m. at the Yelm Cinemas and heading north up East Yelm Avenue to Yelm City Park.
The theme for this year’s parade is “Stars, Stripes & 250 Years,” to mark the America 250 celebration. The festival this year includes the return of free carnival rides for children.
For more information, follow or message the Yelm Chamber of Commerce on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/yelmchamber or call the chamber at 360-458-6608.
Olympia
In Olympia, the Governor’s Mansion Foundation is hosting tours of the Governor’s Mansion on the Capitol Campus featuring Stitching History: Quilts Celebrating America’s 250th — a show featuring both preserved historical quilts dating back to the 1800s and contemporary ones with patriotic themes from private collections and local quilter groups.
The tours will be held on Wednesday, July 1 and July 8, with tours starting every half hour at 10:30 a.m., 11 a.m., 11:30 a.m., noon and 12:30 p.m.
Attendees must register for a tour at least 24 hours before it starts, and each tour is limited to 30 participants. Registration can be done on the Capitol Campus website at https://capitol.wa.gov/tours/governors-mansion-tours.
The Washington Governor’s Mansion Grounds are located at 504 15th Ave. SE in Olympia.
Then, following the Independence Day holiday on Wednesday, July 8, a reading of the Declaration of Independence will be held starting at 3 p.m. inside the Washington State Capitol Rotunda, located at 416 Sid Snyder Ave. SW in Olympia.
The reading ceremony will be conducted by members of both the George Rogers Clark Chapter of the National Society of the Sons of the American Revolution, and the Sacajawea Chapter of the National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution — and coincides with a nationwide reading of the Declaration of Independence happening in all 50 states at the same time.
Centralia
In the Hub City on July 4, Centralia’s Summerfest will be held in the city throughout the day from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. This annual event is organized by the Centralia Downtown Association and Cooks Hill Community Church.
Festivities begin with a free pancake breakfast from 8 to 10 a.m. inside the TransAlta Commons building at Centralia College, located at 615 W. Pear St. Donations at the breakfast are welcome and benefit the Centralia Rotary Club. Also at Centralia College, the Summerfest 5K fun run begins at the clock tower at 8:30 a.m.
From 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., free tours of the historic Borst Home at Fort Borst Park will be available.
In downtown Centralia, Cooks Hill Community Church will be hosting family-friendly events and games at George Washington Park from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., with the final event being the Crazy Fun Entertainment foam party starting at 2 p.m.
Then, at 4 p.m., the special America250-themed Summerfest Parade will make its way through downtown Centralia. Additionally, vendors will be set up throughout the day from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. in the downtown area’s Pine Street Plaza.
For more information, visit the official Summerfest Facebook event page at https://tinyurl.com/m3hc6shv, or follow the Centralia Downtown Association on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/CentraliaDowntownAssociation.
And for families in the area looking to enjoy America’s pastime to mark America250, the Northwest Sports Hub next to Fort Borst Park is hosting the inaugural “Top-Tear Baseball Mania!” youth baseball tournament and carnival starting Thursday, July 2.
Youth baseball teams in the region are invited to register. Age groups 8U through 14U are eligible to participate. The tournament is limited to 150 teams. For more information or to register a team, visit https://tinyurl.com/yvc9twrr.
“This isn’t just a tournament. It’s where champions are made on the field AND memories are made off it,” the Northwest Sports Hub said in a Facebook post.
The NW Sports Hub Carnival will have balloon artists, airbrushed temporary tattoos, carnival games, human hamster balls, foam parties, obstacle courses and bounce houses, a mini-golf course, a black light laser tag arena, a family movie night in the park “under the stars” at Recreation Park Penny Playground in Chehalis, a pool party at the Gail and Carolyn Shaw Aquatic Center in Chehalis and more.
Players participating in the baseball tournament get free admission to the carnival throughout the weekend. For everyone else, general admission to the carnival is $5 per person according to NW Sports Hub co-owner Dale Pullin.
Pullin added he wanted to highlight both the Hub and Mint cities with the event to celebrate Independence Day.
For an extra $5, attendees can enjoy choosing two selections from several classic carnival food stands with corn dogs, elephant ears and cotton candy.
The full carnival schedule is as follows:
July 2
• Black light laser tag inside the NW Sports Hub from noon to 5 p.m., located at 701 Allen Ave. in Centralia.
• Balloon art, airbrush tattoos and mini-golf from 1 to 5 p.m. at Borst Park, along with carnival games and food, bounce houses, obstacle courses, human hamster balls, a foam party from 2 to 3:30 p.m. and more. Borst Park is located at 700 Pioneer Way in Centralia.
• The “movie under the stars” at Recreation Park, with the movie set to start at dusk after 9:30 p.m., with complimentary popcorn and water available. The movie is free to attend and Recreation Park is located at 1155 SW Williams Ave. in Chehalis.
July 3
• Black light laser tag inside the NW Sports Hub from noon to 5 p.m.
• Balloon art, airbrush tattoos and mini-golf from 1 to 5 p.m. at Borst Park, along with carnival games and food, bounce houses, obstacle courses, human hamster balls, a foam party from 2 to 3:30 p.m. and more
• The pool party at the Shaw Aquatic Center, from 6:30 to 8 p.m., though due to safety standards only 250 people may be allowed in at a time. Admission is $6 for youth and $8 for adults, with a $1 discount for seniors and military service members. Those 13 or under must be accompanied by an adult. The Shaw Aquatic Center is located at 401 SW Parkland Dr. in Chehalis
July 4
• Carnival attendees are invited to enjoy the Centralia Summerfest events listed above, or balloon art, airbrush tattoos and mini-golf from 1 to 5 p.m. at Borst Park, along with carnival games and food, bounce houses, obstacle courses, human hamster balls, a foam party from 4 to 5 p.m. Additionally, attendees are invited to enjoy the fireworks show and live music at Stan Hedwall Park in Chehalis. Details for the Stan Hedwall Park events can be found in the “Chehalis” section below
For more information, call the NW Sports Hub at 360-502-7003.
Chehalis
In the Mint City on July 4, the City of Chehalis is hosting its America’s 250th Fourth of July Celebration starting at 4 p.m. at Stan Hedwall Park, located at 1501 Rice Road in Chehalis, which culminates with a fireworks show starting at 10 p.m.
Aside from the fireworks show, a family area will be available in the park along with a beer garden, food trucks and vendors, and live music starting at 6:30 p.m.
Hero awards will also be given out to residents, meant to honor those who serve in the military and veterans, law enforcement and other first responders, educators and other volunteers and essential workers serving the community. The awards are sponsored by Gesa Credit Union.
To nominate someone to receive a hero award or for more information, visit the City of Chehalis website at https://tinyurl.com/4dxw25ct or follow the Chehalis Parks and Recreation Department on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/ChehalisParks.
Vader
In Vader, the Vader Parks volunteers are hosting its annual Red, White and Boom fireworks and car shows for America250 on July 4.
The car show, held on A Street in Vader, will run from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and feature vendors and food trucks set up in the area again.
Registration is $30 per vehicle and available online at https://forms.gle/EJH3vGeoTZ5tA5S98. The car show will be limited to only 103 entrants.
The fireworks show begins after sunset and is held in the field at the Vader Pre-K property on D Street. For more information on either the fireworks or car shows, contact the City of Vader at vaderadmin@vaderwa.org or 360-295-3222.
Along with the car and fireworks show, a pair of time capsules are also being prepared by the Vader Parks Department, with one due to be open in 25 years on America’s 275th birthday, and the other in 50 years on the tricentennial.
Once sealed, both time capsules will be stored and displayed at the Historic Vader Jail, also on A Street on Vader.
Vader Parks invites anyone with photos of local buildings, parks, or even a “nice photo of your own house,” to post it on the official Facebook page for the time capsules to be included in them.
Additionally, taking after a newspaper that did it during the bicentennial in 1976, area residents are invited to write letters to those who will be opening the time capsules, sharing their thoughts on what they think the country and world will be like in 2051 and 2076.
Letters can be posted in a comment on the Facebook page, or dropped off in person at Vader City Hall, located at 317 Eighth St. in Vader.
For more information on the time capsules, visit the Facebook page at https://tinyurl.com/5hxsc447.
Randle
Out in East Lewis County, the Randle Firefighters Association is hosting its annual Big Bottom Blast fireworks show, scheduled for Friday, July 3, with fireworks being launched starting at dusk from the White Pass School District fields located at 516 Silverbrook Road in Randle.
In the evening prior to the fireworks show, the White Pass High School volleyball and football teams will be hosting a bake sale and selling rootbeer floats for a fundraiser — along with the White Pass High School Future Farmers of America chapter, which will be selling burgers and hot dogs.
For more information, follow the Randle Firefighters’ Association on its Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/RandleFirefighters, or call the nonprofit organization at 360-497-5200.
Tenino
In the City of Tenino, the America250 celebration starts Saturday, June 27, coinciding with the official opening of the historic Tenino Quarry Pool for the summer season and the Tenino Family Fun day at Tenino City Park.
The pool will be open from noon to 6 p.m., with admission for children 18 and under free with a paying adult. The Tenino Quarry Pool’s entrance is at Tenino City Park, located at 215 Park Ave. E. in Tenino. Food trucks will also be on hand.
Various family-friendly activities including pony rides and an America’s First Corps Big Band performance are planned at the park.
Throughout the day from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., Living History encampments will be open outside of the Tenino Depot Museum, also located at Tenino City Park. At 1:30 p.m., attendees wearing their patriotic outfits are invited to join the park processional foot-and-pedal parade around the park. Participants must be wearing family-friendly costumes or have their pets in costumes, and only those walking or riding bicycles, tricycles, scooters, skateboards, derby cars or other human-powered modes of transportation can be in the parade.
And inside the museum itself, museum caretakers will once again fire up Tenino’s famous wooden money printer to make a limited edition red, white and blue America250 wooden money note.
It will be the first note the Tenino Depot Museum has printed with three colors, and only 500 will be printed and sold for $5 each to benefit the museum. The first 250 will be sold during Tenino Family Fun Day, and the remaining notes will be sold at the Tenino Oregon Trail Days festival starting on July 24.
For more information visit the City of Tenino’s website at https://tinyurl.com/3ww82veb.
Mossyrock
In East Lewis County, the City of Mossyrock is hosting its annual Independence Day events as part of its special 250 Years of Freedom event on July 4, organized by the Mossyrock Area Action League.
Events start with the Firefighter Flap Jack fundraiser breakfast from 7 to 9 a.m. at the Lewis County Fire District 3 fire house, located at 238 Mossyrock Road E.
Then, the annual Arbor Health Independence Day 5K and 8K runs will be held at the Mossyrock Dam, starting at 8:30 p.m., with participants allowed to run across the top of the dam. To register for the run and get directions to the parking area near the dam, visit Arbor Health’s website at https://tinyurl.com/wvmvrszc.
From 11 a.m. to 8:30 p.m., the 100 block of East State Street will be closed for the annual children’s bike races starting at 11 a.m., the Independence Day parade starting at noon, and the State Street Block Party from 1 to 8 p.m. — featuring live country music performed by Josh Piper, family games including a water balloon toss and relay races, and the State Street Stomp square dancing event.
Additionally, at 1 p.m. outside of Mossyrock City Hall on State Street, a special dedication for the city’s America250 time capsule will be held. The time capsule is a Mossyrock Area Historical Society project, and will not be opened until America’s tricentennial celebration in 2076.
For more information, visit the Mossyrock Area Action League’s website at https://mossyrockfestivals.org/america250/.
Mineral
Out in East Lewis County, the Mineral Lake Lions Club America250 fireworks show starts at dusk on July 4, with fireworks being launched from a boat out in Mineral Lake itself. Attendees are invited to view the show from the Mineral Lake Lions Den Campground.
Prior to the fireworks, events including a kids’ trout fishing pond, line dancing and other family-friendly activities will be available starting at 3 p.m. at the campground.
Yakima-based country artist Ron Mears will also be performing live at the campground starting at 7:30 p.m.
And of course, anglers are always welcome to cast their lines into Mineral Lake to try their luck catching the lake’s famous “10-pound trout.”
Campsites for the event can be booked online at www.campspot.com/book/minerallakelionsden.
The Mineral Lake Lions Den Campground is located at 113 E. Front St. in Mineral. For more information, visit the Mineral Lake Lions Club’s website at https://minerallakelions.com/?p=3059.
Pe Ell
In western Lewis County, the Town of Pe Ell is hosting America250 events on both Friday, July 3, and Saturday, July 4. Along with celebrating America’s 250th birthday, the town is also celebrating its own 120th birthday.
Patriotic festivities kick off on Friday morning with the Pe Ell 4th of July Festival Car and Motorcycle Show at St. Joseph’s Church, located at 417 N. Main St. in Pe Ell. Registration for the show opens at 9 a.m., with attendees welcomed to come view the car show from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and the motorcycle show from 4 to 8 p.m.
Additionally, Lewis County Axe Throwing will have their mobile axe throwing trailer set up, and The Rock City Band will be performing from 5 to 9 p.m.
Then on July 4, the annual Pe Ell Founder’s Day 5K fun run begins at 8 a.m. at the New Harvest Church, located at 98572, 134 Mauerman Road.
The final event is the Pe Ell 4th of July Festival parade, starting at noon on Independence Day on Main Street and Fourth Avenue in Pe Ell.
Vendors and food trucks will also be available throughout both days of the festival. For more information, visit the festival’s website at https://peell4thofjulyfestival.com/, or follow it on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/PeEll4thofJulyFestival.
Packwood
In East Lewis County, Lewis County Fire District 10 and Goble Family Fireworks are hosting their annual Independence Day fireworks show, which starts after dusk at around 9:45 p.m. on July 4.
Fireworks are launched across the road from the fire district’s station, located at 12953 U.S. Highway 12 in Packwood.
Attendees are invited to park and watch the show from both the fire station parking lot and the Packwood Community Hall and Senior Center next to the fire station.
For more information, message Goble Family Fireworks on Facebook at https://tinyurl.com/yc2m72ws.
Tumwater
In Tumwater, an America250 parade, family festival and fireworks show are planned. Events begin with the annual Tumwater Independence Day Parade, on July 4 starting at 11 a.m.
The parade’s route from Capitol Boulevard Southeast to Israel Road Southwest in Tumwater.
Then, starting at 6 p.m. at the Tumwater Valley Golf Course, located 4611 Tumwater Valley Dr. SE, the Tumwater Family Festival begins at 6 p.m. featuring family-friendly games and live performances by The Olson Bros Band, DJ K12 and the Jeff Evans Roving Magic Show.
The evening’s America250 festivities end with the Nisqually Red Wind Casino Fireworks Show, which starts at 10:15 at the golf course.
Nearly two-dozen food trucks will also be on hand for the events at the golf course.
For more information, visit the City of Tumwater’s website at https://tinyurl.com/4xbcsfpj.
Lacey
In Lacey, the annual Lacey Fireworks Spectacular will be held on July 4 at Rainier Vista Community Park, located at 5475 45th Ave. SE in Lacey, with the fireworks show starting after sundown.
Gates for the show at the park open at 4 p.m. though, as prior to the fireworks throughout the afternoon and evening other patriotic events are scheduled, including a live performance by the Pacific Northwest band Golden Hour from 5 to 8 p.m.
Dozens of vendors and food trucks will also be on hand for the event in the park, and a special kids zone with rides and free patriotic temporary tattoos for children will be available. Zoologist Don Riggs will also be on hand with a special presentation featuring live animals from 5:30 to 7 p.m.
For more information, visit the City of Lacey’s website at https://laceyparks.org/fireworks/.
