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Logo4thFestLogo4th Fest Independence Day  Celebration

Est. 2021

Rochester’s official Independence Day celebration, 4th Fest is a free, annual community event featuring live music, poetry, and fireworks.

With local food vendors and craft beer, 4th Fest is a fun-filled celebration for the entire family!

Stay tuned for 2025 event details.

Event

Susan McMillan, Rochester Poet Laureate - 4th Fest: Rochester's Official 4th of July Celebration


4th Fest - 2022 | Rochester's Official 4th of July Celebration!  | Fireworks, Food Trucks, Music & More! | Soldiers Field - #RochMN | FREE

Food trucks (Jersey Jo's Philly Cheesesteaks and More, The Wandering Scoop, Infuzn Foods, Taco Lab, Whiskey Dick's, & Minne’SNO’da Shave Ice) will be on-site!
Susan McMillan, Rochester Poet Laureate - 8:00 PM - Susan McMillan is a lifelong poet who has lived, worked, and volunteered in the Rochester area for more than 40 years. She was appointed Rochester’s second Poet Laureate by Mayor Kim Norton in April, 2019.

Susan finds inspiration in the people around her as well as in the natural world. She prefers being outdoors where she likes to garden, bicycle, hike, canoe, snowshoe, and cross-country ski.

Susan’s poetry has been widely published in local and regional publications, including Oakwood literary journal, The Talking Stick, The Moccasin, Green Blade, and Rochester Post Bulletin. Her poem, “Wicked Child”, was included in Upon Waking: 58 Voices Speak Out From the Shadows.

Her work has been part of the Red Wing Arts Poet-Artist Collaborations, Crossings Poet-Artist Collaborations, Cracked Walnut traveling literary reading series, and the Minnesota Voices program. Among the recognitions she has received for her work, she is delighted to hold a regional award from last year’s Maria W. Faust Sonnet Contest in Winona.

Most recently, Susan helped create Bright Light Stories in the Night, an illustrated poetry e-chapbook of work by poets and artists from southeast Minnesota, which was read in a virtual program by Rochester area celebrities.

Susan believes that poetry is for everyone, and her greatest joy is inspiring poetry in others. She has led workshops as well as helped develop community poetry programs and projects through RCTC’s Learning Is Forever program, UMR Connects, and the Rochester Public Library. She is a long-time member of the League of Minnesota Poets and a founding member of Southeastern Minnesota Poets of Rochester.

4:00 PM  •  DJ LaidEe P | DJ Set #1
4:30 PM  •  Lone Piñon | New Mexican String Band | Global Music Series
5:45 PM  •  DJ LaidEe P | DJ Set #2
6:15 PM  •  Rochester Community Band | Patriotic Music/Symphonic Wind
7:30 PM  •  DJ LaidEe P | DJ Set #3
8:00 PM  •  Susan McMillan | Rochester Poet Laureate
8:30 PM  • Celebrating the Music of*PRINCE*! LIVE! with Chase & Ovation

10:00 PM • FIREWORKS!!! 

Rochester Civic Music presents 4th Fest, Rochester's Official 4th of July Celebration! All are welcome and encouraged to attend this annual FREE community celebration which takes place in Soldiers Field Park near the Soldiers Field Veterans Memorial, featuring a diverse lineup of musical offerings from near and far, a poetry recitation from Rochester's Poet Laureate, and FOOD TRUCKS, all leading up to the main attraction ... FIREWORKS! The festival takes place in an open-to-the-public City park, so lawn chairs, blankets, and coolers are welcome.
 
Presented by the City of Rochester’s music department, Rochester Civic Music, in partnership with Rochester Parks & Recreation, the Rochester Fire Department, and the Rochester Police Department.

City Parking Options for 4th Fest at Soldiers Field Park

3rd Street Parking Ramp (100 3rd St SW)
Soldiers Field Veterans Memorial Parking Lot (7th St. SW)
Soldiers Field Swimming Pool Parking Lot (Soldiers Field Dr. SW)
Soldiers Field Tennis Court Parking Lot (Soldiers Field Dr. SW)
Roy Sutherland Playground Parking Area (Soldiers Field Dr. SW)
Street Parking (Soldiers Field Dr. SW, George Gibbs Dr. SW)
Street Parking (1st Ave SW, Near YMCA)
Soldiers Field Parking Lot, Across the River (Broadway Ave S)
All City and residential side streets, unless marked otherwise

This activity is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through a Minnesota State Arts Board Operating Support Grant, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts & cultural heritage fund.
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