Osceola has long been known as host of one of the biggest and best Independence Day celebrations in Iowa. With over three days of festivities, next week’s celebrations are gearing up to be some of Osceola’s grandest yet. But Osceola Chamber Main Street is looking for a few good volunteers to help pull off all of the activities scheduled over the next week.

osceola 4th of july activities

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Everything kicks off with the carnival scheduled to start up after 4pm on Wednesday. From there it will be a three-day whirlwind of activities Thursday, Friday and Saturday. The Chamber team is looking for additional help throughout the week to make sure everyone has a good time, events run smoothly, and the community is safe and clean during and after the events.

“Students would be ideal,” said Ashleigh Eckles, OCMS Executive Director. “They can pick up valuable hours that count toward Silver Cord credits at graduation.”

Volunteering for these events is an easy way to get involved in the community and give back. For those looking to get involved, the Chamber is hoping for volunteers for the following:

All days – Daily Clean Up and Trash Detail – Need: 20 volunteers. This crew will be in charge of keeping the streets and the square clean of trash and clutter throughout the celebration. Each day, in shifts of 1 hour, volunteers will be asked to pick up paper and other refuse to make sure the event is clean and safe.

Thursday – Talent Show / Pie Auction Volunteers – Need: 3-4 people for each event. These volunteers will help judge the talent show as well as help with the pie auction.

Additional entries are needed for the pie auction as well. This would be a great opportunity to show off your baking skills!

Saturday – Watermelon Contest Spotters – Need: 10 volunteers. This detail will be in charge of coordinating and keeping the watermelon eating contest moving smoothly, filling plates, pulling finished rinds, spotting needs in this crazy, quick-paced and somewhat messy contest.

Saturday – Pedal Pull Muscle – Need: 4-5 quick, strong volunteers. This duty entails helping with the kids’ tractor pull (toy tractors) contest. Volunteers will be helping the kids with the pulls and keeping the chaos to a minimum. This is a state fair sanctioned event and means a lot to the kids.

Miscellaneous Volunteers – Need: Cornhole Games. Additional cornhole game boards are needed for Saturday’s competition on the square. Volunteers would simply help the Chamber by donating their personal cornhole games for the competition and picking them up afterward.

For a full list of the 4th of July Celebration events, look at the Osceola 4th of July “Let  Freedom Ring” Flyer (see image to the right). The flyers are also located in various places around town to help with scheduling and coordination.

Of course, this is just a small list of the volunteer positions needed for the upcoming events. If you’re interested in being part of the celebration, you can contact the Osceola Chamber Main Street offices at 115 E Washington St, Osceola, IA 50213, call 641-342-4200, or email [email protected]