Photo gallery: Ballerini concert, fireworks display highlight Fourth of July celebration in St. George

Written by Jeff Richards
July 5, 2023

ST. GEORGE — Thousands of people were treated to a star-spangled spectacle Tuesday night as 99.9 KONY Country’s annual Fourth of July Celebration entertained the crowds at Utah Tech University’s Greater Zion Stadium.

Audience members fill the Utah Tech football field during “99.9 KONY Country Fourth of July Celebration,” St. George, Utah, July 4, 2023 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News

Although temperatures were a scorching 105 degrees as the program began at 7 p.m., they had fallen into the mid-80s by the time the fireworks started three hours later. Audience members were reminded throughout the evening to stay hydrated.

Country music star Kelsea Ballerini, the evening’s headline act, wowed the crowds with various selections from her Heartfirst Tour.

Sporting a white “Love is a Cowboy” T-shirt, the 29-year-old Ballerini performed that song, along with several others with similar Western themes, including “You’re Drunk, Go Home,” “Hole in the Bottle” and “Half of My Hometown.”

Other favorite numbers included “If You Go Down, I’m Going Down Too,” and “Peter Pan.” During the latter number, audience members held aloft their phones to create the effect of a sea of lights. 

Ballerini wrapped up her 75-minute set with “Doin’ My Best,” with many of the audience members singing along with her.

Shortly thereafter, an impressive 20-minute fireworks show capped off the evening. 

Among the evening’s other highlights:

Kelsea Ballerini performs during “99.9 KONY Country Fourth of July Celebration,” St. George, Utah, July 4, 2023 | Photo by Nick Yamashita, St. George News

Brooke Bang and her daughter Olivia sang the national anthem, right after Liam Howard led the audience in the pledge of allegiance.

A giant U.S. flag (30 feet by 60 feet) was flown above the stadium from a crane. Then, midway through the program, an even more massive flag was unfurled on the east-side bleachers by dozens of Follow the Flag volunteers. The flag, called “Miss Liberty,” measures 78 by 150 and is the largest U.S. flag to be flown, announcers said.

Former Utah Jazz basketball player Enes Kanter Freedom took the stage and spoke of how much he appreciates being a naturalized U.S. citizen, in contrast to the government in his native Turkey, which he called a dictatorship.

“Always believe in three things: faith, family and freedom,” he said. “Never let these things go because these three things are the most important things in life.

“We need to leave our differences on the table, then try to find what we have in common because we only have one world, so we need to make this world better together. And that’s the key word: together.”

Opening act vocalist Daniel Emmet sang “America the Beautiful/God Bless America” and “Amazing Grace.” He was also joined onstage by members of the youth choir called Vocal Motion, who performed “You Raise Me Up.”

A statue of George Washington on horseback, titled “Stand Your Ground” and created by sculptor Angela Johnson, was unveiled and presented to Washington County officials by Lex Howard, founder of United We Pledge and chairman of the board for Liberty Village, a planned living history village envisioned to be built in Washington County.

Dennis Leavitt, president of United We Pledge, also spoke of the recent success of the “Blueprints of Liberty” exhibition in St. George, along with other events held during “Liberty Week.” Leavitt then introduced Jordan Harmon and Benton Crane of Angel Studios, who announced from the stage that new film production based on the Founding Fathers is in the works, with a target completion date of 2026, the nation’s 250th anniversary.

Canyon Media radio personality Carl Lamar was recognized as the inaugural recipient of a community patriot award, in recognition of 35 years of serving Southern Utah with a legacy of honoring America with a pioneering spirit of service and kindness. The annual award will hereafter be named the “Carl Lamar Community Patriot Award,” according to Canyon Media chief operating officer Ben Lindquist.

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Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2023, all rights reserved.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Jeff Richards, a native of Salt Lake City with family roots in Panguitch, lived in Moab for 20 years before joining St. George News in 2017. Jeff is a longtime journalist and secondary school teacher. He and his wife Penny are the parents of five daughters. They also have three young grandsons. Jeff and his family enjoy swimming, camping, sightseeing, reading, and taking pictures.

Email: [email protected]
Twitter: @stgnews@moabjeff@stgnewssports

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