Lafayette Summer Ideas

We here at the Homewood Suites Lafayette have a lot of events that draw crowds from all over just to see our shows.  We have chosen these three to showcase as some of the diverse and wonderful family events you can enjoy in our area! 

ACADIANA SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA and Grammy award winner, Chubby Carrier and the Bayou Swamp Band

A symphony and sunset before the fireworks display!  ASO & Chubby Carrier live music performances; Hot Dog eating contest; Watermelon Seed Spitting contest; Costume contest; Raffles; Food and Drinks; Face Painting

Over 5,000 people attended the 2010 Red, White and Boom, making it our largest crowd to date. It's a new day at the ASO and we want to make this 4th of July bigger and better for our community. This year the Acadiana Symphony Orchestra, the City of Lafayette, and the Acadiana Center of the Arts will present the 2011 Red, White and Boom. Grammy award winner Chubby Carrier and his Bayou Swamp Band will be our headliner. Chubby and his band will be working with some of our summer camp children the week prior to the 2011 Red, White and Boom. Those children will perform with Chubby, his band, and your Acadiana Symphony Orchestra. This year we will offer additional musical performances during the afternoon, multiple children's activities, fun contests and of course a finale full of some of our favorite patriotic music choreographed to an amazing fireworks display. Celebrate with friends, celebrate with music, celebrate with the City of Lafayette, the AcA and your Acadiana Symphony Orchestra.

Join us for the Erath 4th of July Celebration June 30th-July 4th!

Liz from Swamp People attends June 26th Events!

WATER FIGHTS BETWEEN THE AREA FIRE DEPARTMENTS

A few hours before the sun goes down there will be a parade at 5pm.

No one is exactly sure of the year in which the Erath began celebrating the 4th of July. The holiday was celebrated in Erath with a festival prior to World War II, but no festival was held during the war. In 1946, however, the festival was re-established with Roy Theriot serving as the first President and Curney Dronet as the first Parade Chairman. Theriot and Dronet worked in conjunction with the Erath Lions Club to re-establish the festival.

Throughout the late 1940’s and 1950’s, the festival was run by the area merchants as a way to promote Erath, and thereby bring more business to Erath. The Erath merchants would contribute money each year to stage the festival. Several Erath residents that were instrumental in the early success of the festival included: B.J. Gary, Marion Boudreaux, Johnny Suire, Edward Suire, K.A. Bolner, J.P. Landry, Leo Bernard, Sulie Dubois, Emmett Bares, J.D. Vincent, Inez LeBlanc Vincent, Neuby LeBlanc, Fred Dugas, Wilton “Belu” Sonnier, Lee Bernard, and Curney Dronet.

In the early 1962, Dr. Leroy Suire and his wife, Elvie, along with Richard Dubois, Wilton “Belu” Sonnier, and Eddie Shiner took over the operation of the festival. John Earl LeBlanc was elected President around 1964, and served for several years. Les Travailleuses took over the organization of the Erath 4th of July Celebration in 1972. This local women’s organization ran the festival until 1975.

Two people that played an integral part in the Erath 4th of July Celebration throughout the years were Richard Dubois and Relie LeBlanc. Both men were involved in the organization, off and on, since the 1950’s. One of the events that the two men used to stage on the day of July 4th was the go kart races. waterfights. For many years, the special contests were held following the waterfights. These contest included the watermelon and cracker eating contest, which are still held along with the potato relays, and the greasy pole contest, which is no longer held.

South Broadway Street

was closed the morning of the 4th, and all telephone poles and fire hydrants were covered with hay to protect the participants. Go kart races were then held up and down

Broadway Street

. Later on that day, the area fire departments would participate in the

The Acadian Museum in Erath has also been a major benefactor of the funds raised by the Association. The museum has received several donations from the Association to ensure the continued success of the museum. The Association also donated the flag poles in front of the Erath City Hall. The Association voted to donate funds to the Erath Backers Club for use in the construction of a baseball field for the Erath High School Baseball team. Funds were also donated for town lights in Erath, technology at Dozier Elementary and two large signs for the town of Erath. The Association also donated barricades to Dozier Elementary.

New Iberia 4^th of July Parade

New Iberia’s schedule includes many things, among them ecumenical services at St. Peter’s Church, a parade down

Main Street

and a ceremony at Bouligny Plaza.

The parade starts at 7 p.m. at

Main Street

and

Prairie Avenue

, and will progress to Bouligny Plaza.  Once the parade reaches its destination around 7:30 p.m., the ceremony will begin.  The parade will be flanked at each end by a firetruck, the second and last of which will be carrying local artist Paul Schexnayder dressed as Uncle Sam. His family will be riding along with him.

This is Schexnayder first time participating in the Fourth of July parade, but he once dressed up as the Easter Bunny.

Eight civil war re-enactors will be in the parade, shooting volleys (of blanks) down

Main Street

.

Veterans and pageant queens will also be among those in the parade.  Veterans and Boy Scouts will carry a flag measuring 12 feet by 20 feet in the parade, and will hoist it up the flag pole at their destination.

In previous years attendees filled up all 400 chairs set up in the plaza, and people were lined up standing along the sides.  So if you want a seat come early.

The Iberia Community Band and Louisiana Kids will be providing music at different points in the ceremony, as well as during the parade.

The re-enactors also will do a Civil War drill during the ceremony.  There will not be fireworks, but civil war re-enactors will shoot their muskets by the bayou. Schwing and fellow veteran John Cobbes will shoot a miniature cannon.  The cannon packs such a punch that most can’t be closer than twenty feet from it!