State College’s Fourth of July parade will mark its 99th anniversary on Saturday, thanks to the efforts of a new nonprofit organization.
The State College-based, nonpartisan Freedom Rising USA is organizing and hosting the Independence Day parade this year while coordinating with Central PA 4th Fest, which had been responsible for the parade for the past 25 years.
But while the organization is new, it’s not the first time its members are putting together the parade. In fact, it’s closely tied to a local veterans organization’s work on the event for the past three years.
Nittany American Legion Post 245 took on organizing it when Commander D.J. Watkins learned that 4th Fest was not planning on bringing the parade back post-COVID, he said. The parade remained under the banner of 4th Fest, which handled some aspects, while the Legion organized it, Watkins explained.
“They said there won’t be a parade unless you organize it,” Watkins said. “So I became the parade director for 4th Fest.”
As financial and volunteer personnel limitations have continued, causing 4th Fest to make some alterations to the annual celebration this year, Watkins and the Legion post agreed to take on sole responsibility for the parade.
“There is a cost to putting on a parade, and when we looked at what we were going to finance, what kind of volunteer support we had the last couple of years, one of our dedicated board members is with the American Legion, and he said ‘Our group would take it on,’ and we said ‘Sure,’” 4th Fest Executive Director Celesta Powell said in April.
Fundraising as a veterans organization instead of as a public charity was challenging, however, so Watkins and others formed Freedom Rising USA as a 501(c)3 nonprofit with a mission “to celebrate and preserve the rich traditions of American holidays and the values they represent – unity, gratitude, service and freedom,” according to the organization.
“We wanted it to be a 501(c)3, which makes it eligible for all the grants and all the other associated things,” said Watkins, who serves as president of the new organization. “We formed it and we looked at it as there are a number of things that we could do better as a group, so we wanted to make it a place where people could in a nonpartisan way come and celebrate being American and celebrate our American holidays like Memorial Day, Veterans Day, Fourth of July. It’s been very successful so far.”
The parade will line up at 10 a.m. Saturday on Burrowes Street, then will step off at 11 a.m., traveling east on College Avenue before dispersing at Shortlidge Road.
As of Monday, the parade had 42 entrants, which Watkins described as about average, though he noted fundraising got a late start because the need to create Freedom Rising as a charitable organization only emerged last fall.
It will include community organizations and businesses and two pipe and drum bands, as well as local bands Victor and the Icons and OverheaD performing live along the route. Walker & Walker Equipment donated side-by-sides that will deliver water on what is expected to be a very hot day. And, of course, Boalsburg and Alpha fire companies will have vehicles in the parade.
Alpha is integral to the parade’s history, having hosted it as part of State College’s first Fourth of July celebrations starting in 1927. That holds a special connection for Watkins, whose grandfather helped organize the first parade.
“As a kid, I remember standing on Allen Street and watching the flags go by when they were walking,” Watkins said. “One of the World War I vets slapped me in the back of the head because I didn’t stand up. So it’s a great thing for me. I have a picture of my dad in the 1932 parade.”
While the 250th anniversary of the United States is the focus of the 2026 event (as illustrated by the design on the commemorative coin that will be giving to participants), Watkins expects the theme to honor the parade’s history for its 100th anniversary in 2027.
“We’ll celebrate the community roots of the parade,” Watkins said. “It’s a small town event for 100 years, which is really cool.”
Mitch DeLong, Freedom Rising USA vice president, said the organization believes it can make the parade a bigger draw for the community.
“As we look forward to the parade’s 100th anniversary next year, our goals are to increase community involvement, extend parade participation and position our nonprofit for long-term stability,” DeLong said at the Centre County Tourism Grant Awards announcement on June 24. “With the parade’s centennial approaching, we believe it can become an even stronger draw for families visiting the region and finding their happy place here.”
The parade isn’t the only endeavor for Freedom Rising USA.
On National Vietnam War Veterans Day in March, the organization hosted a free brunch for Vietnam Veterans at the Nittany American Legion Post 245 on Pine Hall Road. It will host another brunch for Korean War Veterans Armistice Day in July and one for Gold Star Mother’s and Family’s Day in September.
It will host a service for Veterans Day, and a large ceremony is being planned for Memorial Day in 2027, Watkins said.
But for now, Watkins and company are looking forward to celebrating America and its 250th anniversary as a community, without partisan divides.
“We’ve had former Democratic state representatives and Republican activists contribute generously to us. We’re totally nonpartisan and it’s a chance for people to celebrate how absolutely great it is to be an American,” Watkins said. “I am a retired Navy Special Operations officer and I’ve been all over the world, and I’ve seen a lot of governments that just don’t work. This place we’re in is just absolutely amazing. We want to celebrate America, celebrate the American holidays, honor our veterans and let people be happy to be an American because it’s such a great country.”
