Fourth of July Guide to Polk County

Local residents will find some special amenities with this year's Fourth of July festivities.

Check out local singer/songwriter Derik Thomas at the City of Lakeland celebration or a visit from the USSOCOM Parachute Demonstration team at the Lakeland Tigers game.

Experience the new park setting at Lake Ariana in Auburndale, enjoy the extended centennial celebration in Winter Haven or catch country star Craig Morgan in Haines City.

FRIDAY

Lakeland

The City of Lakeland's T.Mims Corp. Red, White and Kaboom Independence Celebration at Lake Mirror begins at 6 p.m. Patrons will be treated to the The Channel Z Band performing music from the 60's through today's current popular favorites. The Taken By Surprise step team will also be performing. Singer/songwriter Derik Thomas of the Harrison School for the Arts is making a guest appearance. Thomas won the 2010 Earthday Network's "Song For The Earth" competition and sang at the National Mall in Washington, D.C., last year. The event is free, however, patrons are encouraged to bring a canned food item as part of the Chow for Now program benefitting Volunteers In Service for the Elderly (VISTE). Food vendors will be on site. Bring a blanket or lawn chair.

The Azalea Park retirement community of Lakeland, 1325 Grasslands Boulevard, is offering July 4 activities to the public. On Friday, guests can enjoy games and melon refreshments from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. The community offers an ice cream social Saturday with red, white and blue smoothies from 2 to 3 p.m. Enjoy a karaoke sing-a-long Sunday from 2 to 3 p.m. Treat your taste buds Monday with a barbecue at 12:30 p.m. The events are free. For more information or to RSVP, Azalea Park at 863-413-0908.

SATURDAY

Fort Meade

Fort Meade celebrates our country's birthday with its Independence Day Celebration hosted by the city and the Fort Meade Chamber of Commerce beginning at 9 a.m. at Peace River Park off Highway 98. There will be inflatables, children's activities, entertainment, food vendors and a live auction hosted by the Fort Meade Junior Women's Club. The auction features gift baskets, golf packages, plants, flowers, gift certificates and flat screen televisions. Don't forget to register. The auction begins at 8:30 a.m. Proceeds from the event assist local school and community projects.

SUNDAY

Winter Haven

The city combines its 100th birthday in conjunction with its annual Rockin' Freedom Fest at Martin Luther King Jr. Park near Lake Silver. The celebration begins at 4 p.m. Activities include a variety of family-based activities, two ski shows, watermelon seed spitting contest, corn hole, children's amusements, three-legged races, inflatable obstacle course, bounce house, dunk tank, historic displays, food vendors and entertainment by Harmony Grits. Fireworks light up the sky at 9:15 p.m. Bring your lawn chair or blanket.

Deep South Magazine » Blog Archive » Grits & Soul

On May 20, our good friend Anna Kline in the Mississippi Film office sent out an email about her new song, “Flood Waters.” Anna writes the Grits & Soul blog and is the founder and lead singer of a band by the same name. She says the song’s lyrics came to her at work one day, so she immediately recorded a rough version of the song into her phone and brought it to band practice in her living room the next day. Her band recorded the song and within a matter of hours, it made its way to Jackson’s local news station. Less than a week later, “Flood Waters” was on the air. (Scroll down to listen.)

With a chorus that goes: ”Ebb and flow, them flood waters creep up slow. The tide it turns, but this got nowhere to go,” it’s obvious Kline was inspired by the uncertainty of rising flood waters from the Mississippi River recently. Plenty of other Southerners shared her concern, and the song resonated. It’s since been played on the air in Memphis, Baton Rouge and caught the interest of CNN.

Kline describes the song as having a “bluesy twinge” and says the Grits & Soul band is roots-based, with touches of bluegrass, folk, soul and Celtic sounds. She’s not sure what the future holds for Grits & Soul, but the band is touring this summer and doesn’t plan to rest on “Flood Waters.”

“We’re going to keep writing, because we know we have a good thing,” she says. “If you want us to come to your town, let us know!”

Grits & Soul played Hal & Mal’s in Jackson last night and can be seen at High Street Farmer’s Market tomorrow, Mint Restaurant in Ridgeland June 20, Finian’s Irish Pub in Jackson June 29 and the Bright Lights, Belhaven Nights event in Jackson August 13. Find out more about the band on MySpace , Facebook and Reverb Nation.