Every summer, the community of Lennox readies for the biggest event of the year — the Old Fashioned Fourth of July! This weekend celebration has grown to include the annual Cruise Night and Street Dance on Saturday, July 2 and a community church service Sunday, July 3 and a whole day of events on Monday, July 4th.
Cruise night on Saturday begins with classic cars cruising Main Street for hours. The Lennox High School Band Boosters will be located by the Sunshine store selling popcorn, pop and water starting at 5 p.m.
Set up on the north end of Main Street will be the Street Dance featuring Judd Hoos. Gates will open at 6 p.m. Advance tickets are on sale now at area businesses for $7 each. At the gate the cost will be $10 per ticket. Proceeds from the street dance will be donated to local programs as determined by the Lennox Commercial Club, the sponsor of the event.
On Sunday, July 3rd the annual Community Worship in the park will take place with Worship at 10:30 a.m. in Westerman Park, Lennox. A catered picnic in the park will follow. Donations of pies are welcomed. This community worship is sponsored by the LCW Ministerial Association.
Also on Sunday, July 3rd will be the Lennox Fire Department’s annual water fight. This event takes place at the Lennox Fire Station at 1:30 p.m. Bring your chairs and cheer on your local firefighters.
Monday, July 4th is the big day — the first event will be the Firecracker Road Race, which begins at 8 a.m. at Lennox High School. Registration for the race is now open online. The cost for both the 5K and 10K races is $25 each. To pre-register visit https://runsignup.com/Race/SD/Lennox/LennoxFirecracker. A one mile and two mile will also be held. The cost to pre-register is $10. Pre-registration is available at the Lennox City Hall. The day of the race cost is $15. The race is sponsored by the Lennox Lions and the Lennox Area Community Fund.
Rolls and coffee will be served at the Lennox Senior Citizen Center from 8 to 10 a.m., the Center is located at 519 South Main street.
Next up will be the annual 4th of July Parade. It will begin at 10:30 a.m. Parade entries should be at the Sinning Sports Complex to line up by 9:30 a.m. Please note that with the construction on Hwy. 17 entrants are encouraged to plan plenty of time to get there, as traffic will be congested. Those coming from out of town are encouraged to use the Worthing Exit #64 to come into Lennox from the south. The Lennox Fire Department will once again be lining up parade entries.
Eric Machmuller, with the Lennox Commercial Club said the Parade Route will be jogged over slightly this year to alleviate congestion by the entrance to the old football field, where the car show is to be held. The parade route will begin at the south end of Main Street and head north to 1st Avenue. On 1st, it will turn West to Elm Street. The route will then head south on Elm Street, turn west on 9th Avenue, then turn south on Academy to Highway 44.
Following the parade, Arts in Park will be held at Westerman Park from noon to 5 p.m. and will feature craft and food vendors. Food will also be served at the Lennox Senior Center.
Bring your chairs along to the park and enjoy live music following the parade. This year The Lennox Commercial Club is presenting The Austin Buescher Band, and The Teels, featuring Dalton Coffey.
The Annual Car Show and Shine is at the old football field again this year. It will be held following the parade with judging to begin at noon. Trophies will be awarded at 3 p.m. Cost is $20 per entry, the first ten Veterans to register will be free. Pre-Registration is available at Prophecy Tattoo and Midwest Automotive. This event is hosted by Operation Addy, a nonprofit charity run by Anthony Tripp. Fifty percent of proceeds go towards Operation Addy to help local families. More information can be found at www.operationaddy.com or on Facebook under Operation Addy.
New this year will be the Lennox Commercial Club Pedal Pull open to ages 4-11. This event will take place at Westerman Park at 1 p.m. Raffle tickets are on sale now for a John Deere Pedal Tractor donated by Pederson Machine of Beresford. The Tractor is currently on display at Sunshine Foods in Lennox, but many local business have raffle tickets for sale, cost is $5 each or 3 for $10. The Pedal Tractor will be given away at the event, but you need not be present to win.
The 4th is a great day to take in a baseball game! The American Legion team will be playing at 2 p.m.; the Lennox Reds Amateur baseball team will be playing at 5 p.m.
Don’t forget to check out our local museum on the 4th of July. The Lennox Area Museum at the corner of 3rd and Main will be open from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Admission is free but donations are welcome.
To close out the afternoon, a free-will donation Pork Loin Sandwich meal will be served by the Lennox Band Boosters at 5 p.m. at the Picnic Shelter in the Park.
The Lennox Municipal Band will take to the stage at 8 p.m. The LHS Band Boosters will be selling popcorn during the concert and before the fireworks.
Finally, at dusk the annual fireworks show will take place. The fireworks will be shot off from the high school parking lot. Sure to be a great end to a great day!