Events

7:00a

• Self guided Volkswalk “Look Up – Don’t Trip” – Highlight sites of the area – All Day – Starts at Fast Mart, 5k  Volkswalk (3.1 miles) or 10k Volkswalk (6.2 miles) – Free

9:00a

• Antique Market opens, Liberty House Bed and Breakfast
• Immersion Art Installation by Transformational Artist Jeanne Hain Wiemer – Session for a fee –  Calibrate body through mind and spirit through sound, light, fragrance – Red Path Gallery – Appointment Only

10:00a

• Book Talk – “Finding St. Lo” – Ted Neill – Jones Bank Theater at Nebraska National Guard Museum

11:00a

• Junto Winery – 1356 182nd Rd, Seward. Open regular hours.
• Meet Ted Neill, Author of “Finding St. Lo” – Jones Bank Theater at Nebraska National Guard Museum, 11 a.m. – 3 p.m.
• Bottle Rocket Brewing – Open 11 am-11 pm – Food Trucks & Brew. Beer Garden
• Nebraska Community Blood Bank Blood Mobile, 11 a.m. – 3 p.m., Cattle Bank & Trust Co. parking lot

12:00p

• Dowding Municipal Pool – open

1:00p

• Red Path Gallery & Tasting Room – Nebraska Art, Reinhold Marxhausen Watercolor Art Collection Exhibit.

2:00p

• Meet Roosevelt and Churchill – Chautauqua Style – Nebraska National Guard Museum– free

6:00p

• Elite Pole Vault Competition on 5th Street, in front of Bottle Rocket Brewery, between Main and South Street. Contact Jason Berry, 402-641-4615.

7:00p

• Movie “World War II,” FREE, Rivoli Theater – Meet Churchill and Roosevelt – Sponsored by Nebraska National Guard Museum

7:30p

• Wissmann Family Singers – Seward Bandshell – FREE – featuring Wissmanns & Frazier family from Bemidge, Minnesota

8:00p

• Chicken Drop. 10 & 11 pm. Sparetime Lounge. 123 S. 4th. Sponsored by Seward Youth and Community Club.

9:00p

• Homegrown Band – Sparetime Lounge – 9 p.m. – 1 a.m.

7:00a

• VFW Auxiliary Community Buffet Breakfast, VFW Club, serving 7 am-11 am – FEE
• Community Breakfast – Pancake Feed, sponsored by St. John Lutheran Church Music Ministry, Civic Center Basement, serving 7-10 am – FEE
• 2 Mile & 10K Freedom Runs, Seward Optimist Club, 14th & Seward Streets., park entrance, ENTRY FEE
• Registration for July 4 Car Show, FEE – 7-10:30 am, on Seward St. between 6th & 8th Streets.
• Lincoln’s Great Plains Bicycling Club’s Family Day, bicycle to Brainard/Dwight and back or a shorter route, registration at The Living Word Lutheran Church. Approved bike helmets required – OPEN TO ALL – FREE

7:30a

• Anvil Firing, Colonial Custom, Seward Volunteer Fire Dept., Zabka Park behind Bandshell, before and after Prayer Service!
• Flag Raising: Bandshell, Scouts USA, Troop 256
• Community Prayer Service, Seward Ministerial Association, speaker Rev. Robert Perry, UMC, Special Music featuring United Methodist Praise Band – Bandshell.
• Free juice, donuts, United Methodist Church Witness Committee, Seward. Bandshell/Zabka-Perdue Funeral Home.
• Self guided Volkswalk “Seward’s Historic Sites” – All Day – Starts at Fast Mart, 5k  Volkswalk (3.1 miles) or 10k Volkswalk (6.2 miles) – Free

8:00a

• Exhibits Open, FREE – open to the public, 8 am-3 pm
  EXHIBITS INCLUDE:
  • Camp Creek Threshers and SYA Antique Tractors & Farm Machinery, Corner of Jackson and 6th Street.
  • Protective Fire and Casualty Historic Exhibit, Civic Center
  • Nebraska National Guard Vehicles and Aircraft – 8am-3pm. In front of National Guard Museum
  • Bottle Rocket Brewing. Brew and food truck. Beer Garden. Root Beer Floats.
  • “Celebrate Nebraska” Art Quilt Show by Fiber Works, Civic Center
  • “Explosion of Color” Art Show, sponsored by the Lincoln Art Guild. Vote for People’s Choice award, Langworthy Gallery, Civic Center
  • Nebraska National Guard Museum Open House, see new rooms and exhibits for 2019. Goal is 10,000 patrons to visit on the day! 8 am – 6:30 pm – 7th & 9th on Jackson Ave. – FREE
  • Nebraska National Guard “Family Fest” FREE – Pedal cars and things for kids to do – at Nebraska National Guard Museum, 8 a.m. – 3 p.m.
  • Concordia University’s Koenig Fine China Collection, from Marxhausen Gallery Collection, Civic Center, West Fireplace Room. Sponsored by GFWC Seward Woman’s Club.

9:00a

• Seward County Geneological Society Historial Display – “Education in Seward County!” – Discussions with representative – Joan Shurtliff. 9am-Noon – Civic Center.
• Friends of the Library – Book Sale, 9:00 am-12:00 Noon, Memorial Library Meeting Room, use West entrance.
• Red Path Gallery & Tasting Room – R. Marxhausen Watercolor Art Collection Exhibit, a collection of pieces by renowned Seward artist Reinhold Marxhausen. 9 am-7 pm
• Best Decorated Bike/Trike Contest “For the Young at Heart,” Bandshell, RIDE YOUR BIKE IN THE GRAND PARADE! – awards/prizes, all ages welcome to decorate their bike/trike, sponsored by SHS FCCLA – FREE
• Food Alley Opens, 5th St. between Seward & Jackson Streets, food booths
• ”Crafts on the Square” Craft Show Opens, Courthouse Lawn, “Best in the State”
• Antique Market, opens at Liberty House
• Miscellaneous Market Opens, 5th St. between Seward & South St.
• 29th Annual Street Pole Vault Competition, all ages, 5th St. between Main & South, contact Jason Berry, 402-641-4615
• Horseshoe Pitching, Herb Downing Memorial Tourney, Co. Fairgrounds horseshoe pits – ENTRY FEE
• Immersion Art Installation by Transformational Artist Jeanne Hain Wiemer – Session for a fee –  Calibrate body through mind and spirit through sound, light, fragrance – Red Path Gallery – Appointment Only
• Andrew Malan, “Mr. Magic,” Family show, Civic Center Auditorium.
• Special Postal Station Opens – Pictorial Cancellation for Seward’s July 4th. U.S. Post Office Lobby, Free Post Cards! July 4 Only! Open 9-11 am
• Concordia University “Cooling Station” by pole vault on 5th St. Stop by and take a break with water and icy pops (while supplies last.)
• Seward Vol. Fire Dept. Water Fight Tournament, on Jackson St. between 3rd & 4th Streets, spon. SVFD-VFD, women & mixed teams welcome!
• Nebraska National Guard Museum Dedication of new “St. Lo Exhibit” and “Cornrow to Hedgerow.” Come celebrate with us as we dedicate a new room and exhibits recognizing the 75th anniversary of the Liberation of St. Lo, France. Open to the public. Limited seating. Modern restrooms available. FREE.

9:30a

• Special United States Birthday Cake Giveaway, SHS FCCLA – Bandshell
• Abby Van Velson and Her Violin Presents – Civic Center Auditorium
• Pet Parade/Pet Contest, SHS FFA, Bandshell, Bring your pets. Free.

10:00a

• Capital City Dance Shack, Cloggers 10 a.m. and 12 p.m. Bandshell
• Children’s Big Wheel/Hot Cycle Races, in front of Zabka-Perdue Funeral Home, spon. Seward Youth & Community Club – No “rubber wheels” please!
• Auto Show Opens, Seward St. between 6th & 8th streets
• Walking Tour of Seward’s Historic Square, Seward Co. Historical Society, begins at Info. Booth, 5th & Seward Streets, (tour takes 1 hour) FREE
• “Moolah’s” Giant 18 ft. Inflated Slide, Cattle Bank & Trust Co. parking lot, sponsored by Cattle Bank & Trust Co., 10 am-2 pm
• Travelogue – Dr. Louis Reith, “Lifestyles of Rich and Famous – Russian Tsars and Danish Royalty” Civic Center, AV Room
• Red Path Gallery and Tasting Room – OPEN – Featured Arists – 10 am-2 pm
• Mighty Fortress Lutheran Church Hot Dog Feed, 6th & Bradford, Proceeds to Blue Valley
• Dana Nottingham – Patriotic Piano Presentation “The United States – A Shining City Upon a Hill” – Civic Center Auditorium
• Book Talk – “Finding St. Lo” – Ted Neill – Jones Bank Theater, Nebraska National Guard Museum
• Red Path Gallery & Tasting Room Art Show – Exhibit, Cigar Box Guitar artist, Stan Luebbe, 10 am-1 pm in front of Red Path Gallery, 514 Seward St.
• “Smash Mental Illness” Corner of 7th and Jackson – Smash a car with a sledge hammer – Donation
• Lecture – “Uncle Sam – Origin and Evolution of an Idea” by Don Hickey – Wayne State – Bottle Rocket Brewing Co. – Humanities Nebraska
• Lecture – “The History of Schools in Seward County” – Joan Shurtliff – Room 3 Civic Center
• Dr. Brent Royuk – “142 Seward Street: Story of a House” Civic Center, East Fireplace Room
• Nicodemus, The Comfort Dog “Meet and Greet” – Civic Center, Room #3. Sponsored by The Rock Lutheran Church.
• Skin Cancer Screenings. 10am-Noon. FREE. Civic Center. Sponsored by Rejuvenate Skin Studio.
• Dr. Brent Royuk: “142 Seward Street: Story of a House!” Civic Center, East Room
• Apple Pie Making Demonstration – “Della’s Famous Apple Pie” – Made by daughter Kathy Hartmann and family. Civic Center, West Fireplace Room – FREE

10:30a

• Concert: Marble Music PResents – Folk and Patriotic Music – Civic Center Auditorium. Directed by Julia Marble.

11:00a

• Seward Municipal Airport Air Show, FREE, Municipal Airport, south Hwy 15, bring lawn chairs, featuring Lincoln Aerobatic Club and well-known air show pilots. Sponsored by Seward Airport Authority & Whisler Aviation.
• St. John PTL Food Booth, Airport
• Photo OP – Meet Churchill and Roosevelt – Nebraska National Guard Museum
• Red Path Gallery and Tasting Room Art Show – Lois Smith, Plein Air artist and member artist of Red Path Gallery. Watch Lois while she paints in natural outdoor light. 11 am – 2 pm.
• Quilt Talk – “Trunkshow – A Quilter’s Journey”, presented by Shelia Beins, Cattle Bank & Trust Co. meeting room, 2nd floor (elevator available), sponsored by Blue Valley Quilt Guild
• Dowding Memorial Pool, open 11 am-2 pm, 167 N 14th St.
• Book Talk “Concordia University 125 Years – Break Forth and Sing Concordia Nebraska Song for 125 Years” by Dr. Jerald Pfabe, Upstairs East Room, Civic Center
• Lecture “Ben Karoki: Nebraska Japanese American Who Fought in WWII” – Civic Center, Cliff Lowell
• Seward County High School Summer Chamber Choir Directed by Dr. Kurt Von Kampen, Civic Center Auditorium
• Chuck Schroeder – NE Artist – Sketching Demonstration – 11 a.m. – 2 p.m. Red Path Gallery
• Pie Festival, homemade pie & ice cream, 11am-2pm, Civic Center Basement, West Room, spons. by Living Word Lutheran Church
• Sloppy Joe/Yum Yum Feed, Civic Center lower level, serving 11 am-1:30 pm, SHS Band Boosters Fundraiser
• Mexican Folkloric Dancers, Bandshell
• Junto Winery – open until 4 pm
• “James Whitcomb Riley – The Fiddling Children’s Poet” – Deborah Greenblatt – Olde Glory, sponsored by Humanities Nebraska – FREE

11:30a

• Bubble Gum/Apple Pie Eating Contest, Bandshell, sponsored by Seward Rotary Club, FREE – State Championships! No Pre-Registration
• Paul Soulek’s Piano Presents ” A Bit of Patriotism” – Civic Center Auditorium
• Military Vehicle Show – Jackson Avenue in front of National Guard Museum.

12:00p

• Pause for “Pledge of Allegiance” National Anthem, All over celebration grounds
• Capitol City Dance Shack, Bandshell. Sponsor: Suhr & Lichty Insurance, Seward
• FREE Movie “The Greatest Showman” (both theaters), at Historic Rivoli Theater, spon. by Wisehart Family and Seward Arts Council, PG, Run time 2 hours and 7 minutes. Celebrating 100 years – Rivoli Theatre Centennial
• Seward Kiwanis KiTones – Musical Favorites & Patriotic Song Fest, Civic Center Auditorium
• Harmonica Festival/Contest. Free to all ages. Register at door. Prizes. Olde Glory Theatre. Sponsor: Seward Arts Council/SHS Band.
• North Platte Canteen, Charlotte Endorf, Civic Center AV Room, Humanities Nebraska
• Quilt Talk “Celebrate Nebraska” – Cynthia Lewis, Civic Center Room 3
• Book Talk – “Spirit of Nebraska” – Debra Kleve White, Civic Center East Fireplace Room

1:00p

• Quilt Talk – “Trunkshow – A Quilter’s Journey”, presented by Shelia Beins, Cattle Bank & Trust Co. meeting room, 2nd floor (elevator available), sponsored by Blue Valley Quilt Guild
• Haiti Travelogue, the Rv. Scott Krohn, Living Word Lutheran Church, Civic Center AV Room
• “The Tradition in Traditional Family Folk Music” by David Seay, Olde Glory Theatre, sponsored by Seward Arts Council/Humanities Nebraska
• The Todd Sisters present “Favorites and Surprises! A Musical Tribute” Civic Center Auditorium
• “A Century of Fashion” mini fashion show & talk by Sue McLain, GFWC Seward Women’s Club & Humanities Nebraska, Civic Center, Upstairs East Fireplace Room
• Demonstration by Gold Star Martial Arts –  Team Velocity, 5th & Seward Streets
• City Municipal Band Concert “Salute to Sousa,” Honoring “The Greatest Generation” – Bandshell

1:30p

• Sally Jost, Piano Concert, Civic Center Auditorium

2:00p

• Wissmann Family Singers, Civic Center Auditorium
• Ukulele Jam Session – Olde Glory Theatre – FREE – Bring your ukulele
• Lecture – “Space and 50th Anniversary of Man’s Walk on the Moon” by Clifford Lowell, Civic Center, AV Room
• Mexican Folkloric Dancers – Bandshell
• Book Review: Joe Starita’s “Susan La Flesche – A Warrior of the People” – Dr. Louis Reith, Civic Center East Fireplace Room
• “Whirlwind” Mid Eastern Dancers – North side of square – on the bricks

2:30p

• Governor’s Community Reception honoring July 4th Dignitaries, hosted by GFWC Seward Woman’s Club, St. John Lutheran Church Fellowship Hall

3:00p

• Andrew Malan, “Mr. Magic,” FREE magic show, Bandshell.
• Seward Jazzercise Exhibition/Demo. Front of Courthouse on the bricks.

4:00p

• GRAND PARADE, begins at 1st & Bradford Ave. and goes west on Seward Street to City Park. “Family Fun, Freedom and Fireworks on the 4th of July!”
• Cooling Station at Nebraska National Guard Museum. Open until 6:30 pm

5:00p

• Beef Bar-B-Que Meal/Buffet, Olde Glory (inside), advance tickets at Seward banks, can buy on-site as well! Also serving desserts! CK Catering – Olde Glory Volunteers
• VFW Hamburger/Hot Dog Basket Feed, 5-8 pm, VFW Post 4755 Club

6:00p

• Mayor’s Welcome – Crowning Miss Independence and Mr. Firecracker, sponsored by Seward Rotary, Seward County Community Service Award, Nebraska’s Friend Award. Bandshell
• Concession stand, Plum Creek Park

7:00p

• Concert, Bandshell – Sponsored by Seward Arts Council

8:00p

• Concert in the Park featuring Columbus Jazz Orchestra, Plum Creek Park, FREE, sponsored by Jones Bank
• Parachute Jump, Plum Creek Park (weather permitting), sponsored by Tenneco Automotive

9:00p

• Homegrown Bank – Sparetime Lounge 9 p.m. – 1 a.m.

10:00p

• GIANT FIREWORKS SALUTE – A FIREWORKS EXTRAVAGANZA, Plum Creek Park, sponsored by Custom Concrete Specialists, Seward, the July 4th Committee, coordinator Curt Coddington & Company, bring a blanket & chair, walk into the park. Stage by Daws Trucking. Sponsored by Cattle Bank & Trust, Concordia University, Jones Bank – Seward – Milford and Hughes Brothers. NO PRIVATE FIREWORKS ALLOWED.
• Downtown Seward’s “Operation Silhouette,” Holiday lights around the Square featuring lights on the Courthouse!
• View the Local Homes Decorated with Red, White & Blue Lights, home lighting contests spon. by Seward Rotary Club & SHS FBLA
• View the Beautiful “Red, White & Blue” Plantings throughout the community, GFWC Seward Woman’s Club/Keep Seward Beautiful Committee

6:00a

• “Clean Up” – City of Seward, Seward Boy, Cub & Girl Scouts, SHS FFA, FBLA, SkillsUSA, FCCLA & Key Club, 4-H Clubs, Community Volunteers, meet on north side of square, city-wide throughout morning – a “Litter-Free” event – Keep Seward Beautiful!