4th a big day: Kenai to mark nation, city birthdays

America's local birthday cake -- which will be large enough to feed 2,000 mouths this Sunday -- won't just honor our country. It will also commemorate Kenai's 50th birthday.

This year's annual July 4 celebration in Kenai will include several activities honoring the city's half-century existence, including the ribbon cutting at Kenai Homesteader Cabin Park in Old Town and a ceremony to honor the city's past and present public employees.

Parade floats are supposed to pay homage to Kenai's birthday, and Dick and Shirley Morgan will be the parade's grand marshals. Dick is one of Kenai's founders.

True patriots can start their Independence Day at 10 a.m. at the Kenai Chamber Kabin to watch American Legion Post 20 conduct the opening flag ceremony. Scout Paret will be performing the National Anthem on electric guitar.

Music lovers might also want to check out the midway entertainment, happening from noon to 5 p.m. on the green strip near the softball fields.

Na Manu Olu Dance Troupe kicks off the entertainment at midday, followed by the Smith Family Band at 1 p.m.

The parade will roll from Willow Street to the Kenai Spur Highway to Main Street Loop to Cohoe Avenue beginning at 2 p.m.

At 4 p.m. at the midway, the city of Kenai will honor its special guests -- men and women who have served as mayors and council members since Kenai's incorporation.

"It's just unique to think that the city of Kenai is 50 years old," Kenai Mayor Pat Porter said. "We've come a long way. I used to go to Anchorage with a big shopping list. Now I just go to Anchorage to visit friends."

After the ceremony, Tuff-e-Nuff will play some tunes till about 5 p.m.

The midway festivities also include a Kenai Kids Karnival and petting zoo, as well as arts and crafts and food vendors.

When the midway party wraps up, visitors might want to head to Old Town to watch the ribbon cutting ceremony at the homesteader cabins near the Russian Orthodox church.

The cabins serve as a symbol of Kenai's history, according to Joe Harris, who has co-managed the park project.

"They are Old Town Kenai locale cabins where people homesteaded and lived in," Harris said.

One cabin will be decorated as an old school house, one will look like a general store and another will be decorated by a woman who once lived in the cabin with her grandmother.

A fourth cabin will resemble an old-fashioned bachelor pad, according to Harris.

"It has animal pelts in it," Harris said. "Everything that old guys needed to go about their life."

A fifth cabin will eventually be turned into a museum, according to Harris.

Porter said the cabins are a tangible example of Kenai's beginnings.

"They're in a perfect location for the history of Kenai to be shown right there," Porter said.

Of course, America won't be forgotten at Kenai's July 4 festivities. People who want to help the men and women fighting for America's freedom can donate to Boxes for Heroes, which assembles care packages to send to our troops.

The charity collects everything from trail mix to beef jerky to notepads to foot powder.

All in all, Carol Bannock, who is coordinating the Kenai Chamber of Commerce's Fourth of July celebration, said coming out for the fun will be a great way to make "memories that you will keep with you and cherish forever."

"I know people who call their friends and say 'let's meet at Wells Fargo,' and they set up camp for the day and watch the parade go by and talk about motorcycles and muscle cars or marvel at how loud the engines were," Bannock said. "They wave the flag with their children and teach them the importance of American pride."

Andrew Waite can be reached at andrew.waite@peninsulaclarion.com.