Celebrate Independence Day with Manning, New Zion activities

Posted
Clarendon residents looking for Independence Day activities will have multiple opportunities Monday and Tuesday. The city of Manning will host its annual Red, White and Blue celebration starting at 7 p.m. Monday at Manning Municipal Park next to the Red Barn and Farmers' Market. The event will feature live entertainment, dancing, food and fireworks after dark. The city encourages residents to bring chairs, but asks for no coolers or pets. New Zion has a full slate of activities for Tuesday, with it's annual July 4th Celebration Parade starting at 10 a.m. "The annual event dates back over 20 years where it all began with just a simple parade," said Nelson Gibbons. "The parade was free to enter, and many locals participated in it year after year by lining up their tractors, golf carts, vintage cars, four-wheelers, floats, and even a few horses on main street in New Zion, all decorated in red, white and blue." The parade begins at the New Zion Post Office and continues down Salem Road - Main Street in New Zion - then makes a u-turn at New Zion United Methodist Church and comes back through a second time to finish at the post office. "The going joke is New Zion has the only parade that you can see twice, for the same money (free), without ever getting out your seat," Gibbons said. Gibbons said the town added fireworks about a decade ago. They will be held at 9:30 p.m. Tuesday. "To be such a small community, it's a really big show," he said. "Last year, about 2,500 people filled New Zion to grab a seat and see the now 30-minute, professional, non-stop booming display of colors in the Carolina night sky. It truly is something that New Zion is very, very proud of." The town also hosts a Patriotic Program after the parade at New Zion United Methodist Church. "This was added to honor all our military members, both active and retired, for their service," said Gibbons. Last year, the town residents added a cookout, which serves as a fundraiser to help the Clarendon Christian Learning Center. "Some people start showing up for the fireworks display around 5 p.m., so volunteers from New Zion United Methodist Church and the community had the wonderful idea to run the cookout and serve burgers, hot dogs and a few other food items to raise money for the Clarendon Christian Learning Center," said Gibbons. "This year, the cookout will sell barbecue sandwiches, chicken bog, hot dogs, fries and boiled peanuts." The town has also added two events this year. The Miss New Zion July 4th Celebration Pageant was held Saturday, with queens chosen across eight categories. They will march in next week's parade. The July 4th Cornhole Tournament is also a new addition. "It will be a double-elimination tournament, awarding $600 and a set of $300 American flags and regulation cornhole boards to the first-place winner, $300 to the second-place winner and $150 to the third-place winner," Gibbons said. To register, teams may call (803) 460-7799. "Parade and fireworks spectators are encouraged to park down near the church, if parking is full around the crossroads," said Gibbons. "This makes it easier on our law enforcement to help direct traffic after the display is over. You may park in the open grass lot by the church or along the shoulder of the road for the parade and fireworks display."