URBANDALE, Iowa — From the Urbandale 4th of July Celebration to fireworks tents on seemingly every street corner, there are lots of places to find folks getting into the spirit of the Fourth of July.
And what seems like a simple holiday means something different to all of them.
In Urbandale, members of VFW Post 9668 sold cool treats to festival crowds trying to beat the heat. Those veterans said that the day is a welcome reminder of why they served.
"It's nice to see the displays of patriotism around the community. And as people walk around here, the things that they're wearing, you know, the shirts and logos and stuff like that," said Mark Newhall, the Post 9668 Quartermaster.
Americans will spend a total of $9.5 billion on food alone for the Fourth of July, the National Retail Federation says. Most of us probably don't want to be working through the holiday, but those sorts of numbers are music to the ears of vendors like Larry Fyfe, owner of Fyfe Concessions.
"We have concessions out here and we're concessions at the Good Guys car show. So it's pretty much taking care of business," Fyfe said.
But for many Iowans, the holiday is much more personal, allowing them to spend some extra time with the people they care about.
"Just trying to take the kids have fun, whatever they want to do, family time...I have work all the time so I get it when I can," said Derek Mils, who was out shopping for fireworks.
So whatever your reason for celebrating the Fourth, there's plenty to keep in mind beyond figuring out where to buy your fireworks. The anniversary of freedom is still as important as ever, almost 250 years since the nation's founding.
"As a veteran who's traveled overseas, I think we take for granted the freedoms that we have in this country. So I hope that they would reflect on that and just be thankful for what we have here in the United States," Newhall said.