62nd annual Atwater 4th of July Festival and parade

Year after year for 62 years, the Atwater 4th of July Festival has brought families together.

"Happy Fourth of July!"

That includes the Pickton family.

"It's a family tradition in the Pickton family," said Daneill Pickton, Atwater Local.

"We've been coming since we were kids, just enjoy the festivities and watch the parade, have a good time," said Gary Pickton, Atwater Local.

It's a tradition for the vendors, too.

Hector Berber and his family serve up cool drinks and roasted corn every year.

"It's awesome, it's our community," said Berber. "I'm grateful to have my family here helping."

That family tradition is a driving force for the organizers.

"In Atwater, this is kind of like coming home for Thanksgiving or Christmas, there are people that come home just for this on the weekend or on the Fourth of July," said Brad Pickle, Atwater 4th of July. "And I especially like it when I see families come. New families with little kids."

Locals have their favorite parts of the day-long celebration.

"Really watching the parade, seeing all the cool floats, maybe the horses and everything, get some candy, wave some flags, all that good stuff," said Gary Pickton.

600 people started the day at 7:30 with a Run for Independence.

Then the parade took a slower pace through town, which long-time organizer Brad Pickle says drew a crowd of about 10 thousand people.

"Atwater's the place to be on the fourth of July," said Pickle.

On foot and horseback, that crowd moved over to the festival at Ralston Park to fill up on food and enjoy some music.

For the kids, there's face painting.

The party will continue across town at the Castle Commerce Center where crews spent the afternoon setting up the stage for the concert.

Then, the fireworks. With the festival ending at 4, vendors were ready to pack up and end the day of hard work with the show.

"Yes, we come and work, but it's also an enjoyable time for the community and my family as well," said Berber.

If you plan on heading over, you'll want to get here soon to get a good spot before the fireworks start at 9:15.

That is also when the gates will close.

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