The Valley is gearing up for a bang-up July 4 celebration.

Get a head start on the Independence Day festivities by visiting the All Aboard Westcliffe yard sale starting on Friday, July 3, which continues through Saturday, July 4, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. each day at the AAW interpretive center. Proceeds benefit various restoration projects.

Also starting Friday, July 3, and continuing through Sunday, July 5, is a quilt show and sale at the Sunflower Patch in the 200 block of Main Street in downtown Westcliffe.

Also this weekend, the annual firefighter benefit dance will be held Friday, July 3, from 9 p.m. to 1 a.m. at the Main Fire Station on Fourth Street in downtown Westcliffe.

“Country Gold” of Pueblo will provide the music. Cost is $7 a couple and $5 a person. Proceeds benefit the Wet Mountain Fire Protection District.

Start July 4 on a full stomach by heading to the red caboose on the west end of Main Street in downtown Westcliffe to enjoy flapjacks, sausage, juice and coffee prepared by AAW members.

The fundraising breakfast will be served from 7 to 10 a.m. Cost is $7 for adults and $5 for children age six and under.

Once that stomach is full, stroll through Main Street in downtown Westcliffe to get a peak at the numerous classic and antique cars on display from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. on July 4.

Bargain hunters will also want to spend some time perusing the merchandise in the event center on the west end of Main Street in downtown Westcliffe. The craft and flea market on July 3-4 will begin at 8:30 a.m. each day.

The annual red, white and blue parade through downtown Westcliffe begins at 10 a.m. on Independence Day.

An ice cream social and patriotic sing-a-long  will take place on July 4 from 2 to 4 p.m. in the historic ‘Westcliff’ schoolhouse and museum on Fourth Street in Westcliffe. Cost is $3 a person with proceeds benefiting the Valley Parks, Recreation and Youth Center organization.

The Valley’s Independence Day celebration will draw to a close with the Chamber of Commerce’s annual pyrotechnics display to light up the Valley’s night sky.

The light show will be held July 4 at dusk, which is around 9 p.m. As always, the fireworks display will be held at Lake DeWeese. There is no charge, however, donations to help pay for the show will be accepted.

Volunteers will be stationed at the lake’s main entrances to collect cash donations. Donations can also be dropped off at the Chamber office located in the 500 block of Main Street in downtown Westcliffe.

This year’s show will cost about $9,000, said interim Chamber of Commerce director Claire McCutcheon.

Call the Chamber of Commerce office at 783-9163 for more information.

– Nora Drenner