VALE — The Vale 4th of July Rodeo and Oregon Trail Days are coming your way.
The festivities kick off at 6 p.m. Thursday, June 29, with the Grand Marshal Barbecue in Vale’s Wadleigh Park, and the whole community is invited to attend.
Tickets are $7, and there is no cost for children under 5. Hot dogs, hamburgers and chorizos will be served.
The barbecue will honor this year’s grand marshals Tom and Linda McElroy. Also in attendance will be this year’s rodeo queen contestants, as the new queen will be crowned on Tuesday, July 4, at the Vale rodeo.
The rodeo offers riding, roping and more in shows on four dates: July 1 through 4. The pre-rodeo is at 7 p.m. each day, with the grand entry and main show at 7:45 p.m.
Rodeo admission is $12 for adults (age 13 and up) and seniors; $36 for adult season passes; $8 for youths age 6-12; $24 for youth season passes; and free for age 5 and under.
Oregon Trail Days offers a variety of events in town, also July 1-4. Wadleigh Park will be the site of vendors, activities and entertainment including Phillips Bluegrass all four days.
New to Oregon Trail Days this year, according to organizer Cathy Zacharias, is the Hispanic Fundraiser at St. Patrick Catholic Church, at 690 A St. W. in Vale. It will be on Sunday, July 2, from noon to 10 p.m.
“We’re trying to bring in the whole community,” Zacharias said.
The Vale City Emma Humphrey Library will hold its annual Scholastic Book Fair Saturday, July 1, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Later on Saturday, the Take it to the Streets Dance kicks off next to Mal’s Diner at 9 p.m.
Classic cars will roll in for the Oregon Trail Days Show and Shine car show on Tuesday, July 4. Registration begins at 8 a.m. and the car show goes until 2 p.m.
The car show will wrap up with an awards show for first and second place, and honors for the car that traveled the farthest.
There is a $10 entry fee per class for cars, but spectators get in free.
At the Vale City Pool, the 4th of July Independence Run – with 1-mile and 5-kilometer events – is slated for 8:30 a.m. on the holiday. The City of Vale puts on the run.
A longtime favorite is the Fourth of July Breakfast cooked up by the Vale Lions Club at Wadleigh Park. It also is on Tuesday, from 7 a.m. to 11 a.m.
The Quilt Show has changed venues and will be held at the Vale Senior Center. Quilts will be shown Sunday, Monday and Tuesday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Other special events for rodeo fans include the annual Suicide Race at 8 p.m. Monday, July 3, and pig scrambles on July 2 and July 4.
And no one will want to miss the annual rodeo parade at 5 p.m. July 4. The lineup will be in the Vale High School parking lot.
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