Saturday, July 4th, around 5p.m., a steady flow of people began to enter the Waterfront, securing their spots on the Great Lawn with lawn chairs and picnic blankets. The weather was perfect for the evening: not too hot, clear skies, and sunny with no hints of rain.
Food trucks and drink carts lined the underpass, while booths were set up along the walkway by the Great Lawn. Many booths gave out free goodies and information on their organizations. Thornton’s booth had mini hand fans and glow sticks, which were a big hit as hundreds of these could be seen throughout the crowd. Louisville Orchestra also had a booth with free temporary Lou Orchestra tattoos that they helped you put on! Louisville Third Century was also there and brought along one of their Dragon Boats. They are a non-profit organization that spotlights the importance of cultural, education, and economic development in the city of Louisville through various events, including the Louisville Dragon Boat Festival.
As 7:30p.m., rolled around, hundreds of spectators made their way over to Slugger Field to watch Louisville City FC face off against the Richmond Kickers. Inside, it was a sea of purple, rooting for Louisville’s home team. Louisville scored the first goal of the game about 16 minutes in and kept the Richmond Kickers at bay until the last minute. The final score was Louisville City FC 3, Richmond Kickers 0.
While the soccer game went on, thousands of people enjoyed music at the main stage on the Great Lawn. The Louisville Orchestra, led by Teddy Abrams, finally took the stage at 8:30p.m., and played multiple beautiful pieces until 10p.m. Their featured guests, Ben Sollee and Jecorey “1200” Arthur were big hits, and the crowd loved every bit of this concert.
Once the clock struck 9:55p.m., the orchestra played their last piece, and to the crowd’s delight, the firework show also began. The music and fireworks went flawlessly hand-in-hand to kick off the start of the fireworks display. By 10p.m., the music had died down while the fireworks continued for another 10 minutes.
The fireworks were the perfect ending to the evening’s Waterfront festivities. We hope to see this celebration again next year!
Photos by Irena Tran
