moses lake — Citizens of Moses Lake gathered at Sinkuse Square and McCosh Park on Saturday for the Red, White and Boom Independence Day celebration, which was organized by the Moses Lake Museum and Arts Center and the city’s Department of Parks, Recreation and Cultural Services.
Dolly Boyd, Superintendent of the Museum and Arts Center, explained the inspiration behind the event.
“We didn’t just want to do fireworks, but we wanted to bring back the summer concert series. We did some surveys around town, and that was the number one thing people wanted to see.
According to Boyd, the group of volunteer event coordinators usually behind Moses Lake’s Independence Day celebration decided to focus their efforts on the 2023 Spring Festival. The museum stepped in to work with the Parks Department to organize the Independence Day event.
Boyd talked further about the museum’s goals in helping manage the festival.
“Moses Lake has not always been known for its arts and cultures, and we are trying to change that. We want to support creative businesses.”
Starting at 8 a.m. at the Farmers Market in McCosh Park, the festivities continued throughout the day. A free family scavenger hunt was held in the afternoon following the market, before the main event moved to downtown Third Avenue at 2 p.m. Various booths were set up in Cinquez Square for the public to check out.
The museum and arts center, which had its own booth, was one of several information centers for local organizations, including Grant County Animal Outreach, Access to Infant and Child Dentistry, Grant County Health District, Washington Special Olympics, Grant County Conservation District, NCW library included. and the Moses Lake MLK Committee.
LaDonna Ritchie of the MLK Committee commented on the number of people coming to the informational booths set up in the city.
“There’s been a really good turnout. I think it was very well publicized, so a lot of people came.”
Event coordinators set up an open mic from 2-4 p.m. and a street taco contest at 4 p.m. The judging panel for the taco competition included Mayor Don Myers, Deputy Mayor Dina Martinez, Richard Pollock – executive chef of Samaritan Healthcare – and local artist Fabian Nuñez.
According to the Moses Lake Downtown Association, Nuñez’s graphic design company, Artisans Company, designed the taco contest trophy, which was 3D-printed by Big Bend Community College. The panel presented the trophy to Enrique Garcia of Tacos El Rey, the winner of the competition.
At 5 p.m., community members headed to McCosh Park to enjoy games, local vendors and food outside the McCosh Centennial Amphitheater, which hosted Journey tribute band Stone in Love for a free concert at 8:30 p.m. Hosted, this concert is the first of many. According to Boyd, the concerts are scheduled for Moses Lake’s summer concert series.
Attendees made their seating arrangements a few hours before the concert, and the amphitheater slowly filled to watch Stone in Love rehearse. Jorge Hernandez, a concertgo who was camping near the top of the theater, talked about the event and the holiday.
“It’s very important. I have a five-day weekend, and it’s nice to have a free schedule after working all week.
Red, White and Boom’s grand finale fireworks display over McCosh Park at 10 p.m. Moses Lake Park, Recreation and Cultural Services Director Doug Coutts reflected on the event’s success in an email to the Columbia Basin Herald.
“We received a lot of positive feedback on city social media pages about this event, especially the Street Taco Contest, Open Mic, Music in the Park and Free Family Saturdays. It was fun to watch the community and guests enjoy the festivities.”
Gabriel Davis can be contacted at gdavis@columbiabasinherid.com.
