Montezuma ‘Let Freedom Ring’ celebration draws crowd

MONTEZUMA — It was a beautiful day for a parade, and Montezuma didn’t disappoint.

The annual “Let Freedom Ring” Celebration July 6 drew more than 70 entries. while youngsters filled their bags with lots of candy thrown from the floats.

After the parade, the town square remained active as families enjoyed a variety of foods and children took advantage of the bouncy houses, dunk tank, miniature golf and firefighter’s challenge.

“It was a great parade with lots of good candy for all the kids,” said Jessica Cossolotto, who attend the event with her family.

“It is a beautiful day and I loved seeing all the parade entries.”

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Members of the Montezuma Lions Club cooked and served more than 800 chickens with all the fixings at the Memorial Hall.

Others vendor had food and sweet treats, and the town square hosted a number of local and area vendors selling everything from books to food items.

“It’s a great fundraiser for the Lions Club,” said Pat Montag, who helped man the grills. “We appreciate the community support that enables us to give back to the community.”

This year’s grand marshals were sisters Jo Ahrens, Barb Albin and Marg McVay, of Three Sisters Fabric and Fashion.

They trio was named grand marshals for their many years of giving to the school and business community through service

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“I like the diversity of all the floats,” said Wyatt Bradshaw, 9, who rode on the Girl Scout float this year. Wyatt’s mom, Kati, is the local Girl Scout leader.

“We feel like it was one of the biggest parades in several years,” said Brad and Randi Sincox, owners of the Montezuma Dairy King.

“We love seeing the community come out and enjoy the parade and the free ice cream we were handing out.”

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“It was great seeing the big turnout,” added Angie Lamberson. “My granddaughters loved it. It was fun watching the parade.”

Mikayla Kofoel, 8, said her favorite part of the day was the dunk tank.

“I liked riding in the parade in a firetruck,” she said.

“The parade is welcoming and exciting to watch,” said Izzy Roorda of Montezuma. “I like the Dairy King float and the free ice cream.”

The King and Ritner families from Chicago enjoyed seeing friends from the Montezuma area and attending the parade. This was their fifth year making the trek.

“It’s wonderful,” said Carissa Ritner as her children waited to fill their bags with candy.

The Montezuma Community Development organization hosts the annual Fourth of July celebration.