Heritage Days schedule of events Thursday, July 6– Lester Buresh Family Community Wellness Center (855 Palisades Road SW) 5 to 9 p.m. – Bouncy Houses, Food Trucks (Kona Ice, Caribbean Kitchen, Mexican Food, Willie Ray’s BBQ), Live Music from Fork in the Road 5:30 p.m. – Mount Vernon Bank and Trust Fun Run at Mount Vernon Track. Registration begins at 4:45 p.m. Friday, July 7– Cornell College, 600 First Street NW 8 p.m. Summer Picnic with food and beverages for sale, provided by Bon Appétit 9 p.m.ish (at Dark) Fireworks Display by Heritage Days NOTE: UPTOWN SET UP BEGINS FRIDAY AT 3:30 PM (1st Street closes at 3 p.m.) Saturday, July 8 Uptown and throughout Mount Vernon 8-10 a.m. Alumni and Community Breakfast taking place in the High School Commons. Open to all alumni, families, friends, and the community. Cost: Donation at the door. 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Heritage Days Car Show – Car Show takes place on First Street on the East Side of Highway 1 (from Highway 1 to the FSCC parking lot) 9:30 a.m. – Parade Line-up begins at the SAW (Norma and Richard Small Athletic and Wellness Center, 835 1st St. NW) 10:30 a.m. Heritage Days Parade, First Street West – Theme = “Family Friendly Mardi Gras” Parade starts on First Street West, winds down Fifth Avenue North and ends at Seventh Street. (Line up begins at 9:30 a.m.) 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Memorial Park Family Fun Zone – Themed crafts and games for kids based on “Peter Pan” 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. – Trackless Train 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. Alumni Reception in Uptown Mount Vernon in Mount Vernon Bank parking lot — Hang out with your classmates Uptown and meet fellow alums from many classes. Friends, family, and Community welcome. 11:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. Carnival games and inflatables, Main street in front of the old fire station 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. Lions Club Bingo, event takes place in front of MV Bank on Saturday only 11:30 a.m. to midnight Food Vendors First Street West — United Methodist Church (afternoon only), Taylor Concessions, Taco Express, Americana Concessions MAINSTAGE 11 a.m. to Midnight — Beverage Tent, First Street West noon – Poet Laureate Amelia Kibbe 12:15 p.m. – Mount Vernon-Lisbon Community Theatre 12:30 p.m. – Dance Arts Iowa 1 p.m. – Set up starts for MV Wrestling Team 1:30 to 5:30 p.m. MV Wrestling Team – bean bag toss tournament fund raiser 5:30 to 8 p.m. DJ music 8 p.m. to midnight Crazy Delicious Band SECONDARY STAGE (on the lawn of the First Street Community Center, 221 First St. NW) Noon – Reading of the Declaration of Independence courtesy of members of the American Legion, followed by DJ music and announcements pertaining to the Car Show. AT POOL 5:30-7:30 p.m. Theme Night @ the Mt. Vernon Pool: Family Friendly Mardi Gras 9-11 p.m. Movie Night @ the Mt. Vernon Pool, “The Princess and The Frog”
The Annual Heritage Days Festival, Mount Vernon’s biggest summer festival, will take place Thursday July 6, through Saturday, July 8, with a theme of “Family Friendly Mardi Gras.”
The event will be hosted by Cornell College, the Lester Buresh Family Community Wellness Center and the Mount Vernon-Lisbon Community Charitable Development Group (CCDG) in partnership with the Mount Vernon Alumni Association, the City of Mount Vernon, and several other local organizations.
Highlights of the three-day festival will include fireworks, a kids fun run, bouncy houses and inflatables, carnival games, bags tournament, a parade, a Car Show, the Memorial Park Family Fun Zone, live music and more.
“The Heritage Days committee chose a family-friendly Mardi Gras theme for 2023,” said Joe Jennison, Director of Main Street and Marketing for the Mount Vernon-Lisbon Community Charitable Development Group (CCDG). “We are grateful to our many sponsors who are making this event possible, and hope everyone will come out and join us as we put a Family Friendly spin on Mardi Gras.”
Thursday, July 6The event will kick off Thursday, July 6, at the Lester Buresh Family Community Wellness Center, 855 Palisades Road SW, Mount Vernon, with bouncy houses, games, food trucks and live music from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m.
Friday, July 7 On Friday, July 7, Heritage Days will host Fireworks Night at Van Metre Field at Ash Park, 600 1st St. NW. Here, the event will begin at 8 p.m. with picnic items for sale by Bon Appétit. Families are welcome to bring their own picnic items, but NO ALCOHOL is allowed on site. The fireworks show will begin at dark. Spectators are invited to watch from the bleachers at the football field or in the grassy areas surrounding the bleachers, but no admittance to the track or field will be permitted.
Saturday, July 8On Saturday, July 8, the day begins at 8 a.m. with an alumni-community breakfast at the Mount Vernon High School Commons, 731 Palisades Road.
The annual Heritage Days Parade with a theme of “Family Friendly Mardi Gras,” will take place at 10:30 a.m., with lineup beginning at 9:30 a.m. at the SAW (Small Athletic and Wellness Center) on the Cornell College campus, 600 1st St. NW. Parade starts at 10:30 a.m. onto First Street West. It then winds down to 5th Avenue North and ends at Seventh Street.
Returning this year will be the Memorial Park Family Fun Zone from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. with a “Peter Pan” theme that offers children and families the opportunity to play themed activities and meet costumed characters from the beloved book and movie.
On the Main Stage on the Westside of Highway One, Mount Vernon Poet Laureate Amelia Kibbe will do a reading, followed by a short performance by the Mount Vernon-Lisbon Community Theatre and a short performance by Dance Arts Iowa. DJ music will be playing from 5 to 8 p.m. and the Crazy Delicious Band will perform from 8 p.m. to midnight.
New this year on Saturday will be the return of the Heritage Days Car Show taking place from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on the East side of Highway One. A Second Stage will be set up on the lawn of the First Street Community Center, 221 First St. NE, to accommodate the reading of the Declaration of Independence by the American Legion at noon, followed by DJ music and announcements pertaining to the Car Show.
Also on Saturday, the Mount Vernon pool will have a Mardi Gras-themed family night from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. and a Movie Night showing the animated version of “The Princess and the Frog” from 9-11 p.m.
Heritage Days is an annual Mount Vernon event that seeks to bring the community together, including a large number of MV School Alumni, and raise funds for, and awareness of, several community-based organizations. To that end, a partnership with Southeast Linn Community Center, 108 S. Washington, Lisbon, will bring volunteers in T-shirts to Uptown throughout the event to collect donations to help further the mission of this important community organization.
As has been the tradition throughout this event’s history, several local organizations will use this event to raise money for local projects. Some of those organizations include the Mount Vernon Volunteer Firefighters and the Mount Vernon Wrestling Club.
A complete Heritage Days schedule is available here:
Sign up for the bags tournament directly with Aaron Truitt at [email protected] or through phone at (319) 560-4477.
Thursday, July 6– Lester Buresh Family Community Wellness Center
(855 Palisades Road SW)
5 to 9 p.m. – Bouncy Houses, Food Trucks (Kona Ice, Caribbean Kitchen,
Mexican Food, Willie Ray’s BBQ), Live Music from Fork in the Road
Friday, July 7– Cornell College, 600 First St. NW
8 p.m. Summer Picnic with food and beverages for sale, provided by Bon Appétit
9 p.m.ish (at Dark) Fireworks Display by Heritage Days
NOTE: UPTOWN SET UP BEGINS FRIDAY AT 3:30 PM (1st Street closes at 3 p.m.)
Saturday, July 8
Uptown and throughout Mount Vernon
8-10 a.m. Alumni and Community Breakfast taking place in the High
School Commons. Open to all alumni, families, friends, and the
community. Cost: Donation at the door.
9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Heritage Days Car Show – Car Show takes place on First Street
on the East Side of Highway 1 (from Highway 1 to the FSCC parking lot)
9:30 a.m. – Parade Line-up begins at the SAW (Norma and Richard Small
Athletic and Wellness Center, 835 1st St. NW)
10:30 a.m. Heritage Days Parade, First Street West – Theme = “Family Friendly
Mardi Gras”
Parade starts on First Street West, winds down Fifth Avenue North and ends at Seventh Street. (Line up begins at 9:30 a.m.)
11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Memorial Park Family Fun Zone – Themed crafts and games
for kids based on “Peter Pan”
11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. – Trackless Train
11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. Alumni Reception in Uptown Mount Vernon in Mount
Vernon Bank parking lot — Hang out with your classmates Uptown and
meet fellow alums from many classes. Friends, family, and Community
welcome.
11:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. Carnival games and inflatables, Main street in front of the old
fire station
11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. Lions Club Bingo, event takes place in front of MV Bank
on Saturday only
11:30 a.m. to midnight Food Vendors First Street West — United Methodist
Church (afternoon only), Taylor Concessions, Taco Express,
Americana Concessions
MAINSTAGE
11 a.m. to Midnight — Beverage Tent, First Street West
noon – Poet Laureate Amelia Kibbe
12:15 p.m. – Mount Vernon-Lisbon Community Theatre
12:30 p.m. – Dance Arts Iowa
1 p.m. – Set up starts for MV Wrestling Team
1:30 to 5:30 p.m. MV Wrestling Team – bean bag toss tournament fund raiser
5:30 to 8 p.m. DJ music
8 p.m. to midnight Crazy Delicious Band
SECONDARY STAGE (on the lawn of the First Street Community Center, 221
First St. NW)
Noon – Reading of the Declaration of Independence courtesy of members of the
American Legion, followed by DJ music and announcements pertaining to the Car Show.
AT POOL
5:30-7:30 p.m. Theme Night @ the Mt. Vernon Pool: Family Friendly Mardi Gras
9-11 p.m. Movie Night @ the Mt. Vernon Pool, “The Princess and The Frog”