Ansonians were dancing in the streets June 30 for the annual Summer Jam in early celebration of Independence Day.
The event, sponsored by Uptown Wadesboro, Inc., featured the Carolina Live Band, food vendors, face painting and ended with fireworks.
UWI Director Julian Swittenberg said they received good feedback for the event, especially the fireworks, which is the biggest draw.
“We hope that people will feel that sense of community by attending an event that draws everyone together for the patriotic holiday,” Swittenburg said.
Lakenya Brown said that she wished more people would take time to attend events such as the Summer Jam.
“I had a lot of fun, and the band was awesome,” Brown said. “To see people standing in the streets dancing and sitting in their lawn chairs enjoying each other, it felt like a family reunion.”
Brown also went live on Facebook to showcase the Carolina Live Band and to draw more people to the event. She also said that she hoped going live would help people see the good things that Uptown Wadesboro does for the community.
Summer Jam started as an effort by UWI to have events similar to surrounding communities and were held at different venues around Uptown from June to August, said Swittenburg.
After a few years, Summer Jam was reduced to just one event around the Fourth of July due to problems with venues and UWI’s ability to sustain three events, according to Swittenberg.
“The goal is to continue the tradition of offering music and fireworks for the community around the Fourth,” he added.
The board started planning in January to make sure they could get the band and fireworks scheduled and the last two months were spent lining up vendors.
“Everyone on my newsfeed talked about how much they wished they were there,”Brown said. “Maybe this will convince them to come out in numbers for the next event.”