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Juneau residents find their spark without fireworks on eve of Independence Day
- Ellie Ruel
- 8 hours ago
- 4 min read
Annual watermelon-eating contest, soapbox derby trials, marching band concert continue their traditions despite threat of stormy weather
By Ellie Ruel and Mark Sabbatini
Juneau Independent
Slightly soggy weather didn’t dampen spirits during a Douglas community picnic kicking off the traditional festivities for Independence Day at Savviko Park.
“We are excited to be celebrating the 250th anniversary of our country, our freedoms,” said Maggie Swanson, president of the Douglas Fourth of July Committee. “We are just looking forward to having a positive celebration. Douglas is all about the community, family and fun.”
Shows of toothy endurance drew a large and enthusiastic crowd to the annual watermelon-eating contest. Spectators cheered on and filmed sticky-faced contestants as they competed for a token $5 bill and bragging rights.
Jackson Bass, one of two tied winners of the 12-year-old division, said the crowd noise is what inspired him to join the contest. As a last-minute contestant, he said his strategy was simple.
“I just gobbled as much into my mouth as I could as fast as I could,” Bass said.
Sibling rivalry inspired twins Delylah and Wyatt Kitchen to go toe-to-toe as the only 16-year-old contestants. It was their first time competing during their yearly summer trips to visit an uncle in Juneau.
Delylah Kitchen triumphed over her brother, saying she employed a “side-to-side” strategy.
“I did it for the love of the game, not any of the money,” she laughed. “Didn't even know there was money at all.”
2026 Douglas Fourth of July Watermelon-Eating Contest Winners
2-year-old category: Colin Smith
3-to 4-year-old category: Ellis Pilcher
5-year-old category: Aurora Reishus
6-year-old category: Rory Vrabec
7-year-old category: Carter Gendron
8-year-old category: Louisa White and Wally Seidman (tie)
9-year-old category: Uri Bucheli and Harper Heathe (tie)
10- to 12-year-old category: Michael Howard and Jackson Bass (tie)
13- to-14 year-old category: Dawsyn Kitchen and Ben Dillon (tie)
16-year-old category: Delylah Kitchen
Adult category: Greg Pilcher and Robert Gabel (tie)
Up the hill on St. Ann’s Avenue, young drivers took their soapbox cars for practice runs down a wooden ramp before the main competition on Saturday.
Mateo Echave, 8, said he’s feeling more confident about driving this year. It’s his third year competing in the derby.
“Usually, I'm really scared before I go down,” he said. “But this time, I was just, like, chill.”
His father, Jesse Echave, said they built the car together two years ago. They added a new steering wheel this year, noting the cars are “pretty hard to steer,” but he said Mateo was getting the hang of it.
The soapbox derby finals are scheduled for 3 p.m. on Saturday at the top of St. Ann’s Avenue.
Band celebrates 50th before US celebrates 250th
The Juneau Volunteer Marching Band was formed in 1976 to provide music for the community’s bicentennial July 4 celebration. So another big birthday for the U.S. is a golden anniversary for the band as well.
The ensemble got its traditional early start on local holiday activities with a concert of traditional patriotic songs at Sealaska Heritage Plaza on Friday evening. About 150 people attended the performance that lasted a bit more than an hour — which was free of the rain and wind forecast that led to a one-day postponement of Juneau’s official fireworks show until 11:59 p.m. Saturday.
Peter Anderegg, a Juneau resident since 1967, said he’s been a performer in the pre-holiday show every year since 2008, and is now seeing kids and grandkids of performers from early days playing in and helping conduct the group. The musicians began preparing for this show about three weeks ago.
“Juneau is such a busy town and all of our musicians play other stuff so getting everybody to sit down together, that’s tough,” he said. “And the other thing that I'd like to stress, if you get a chance to say this, is how many of our players came out of the Juneau school system or taught.”
Anderegg spent most of the concert seated and playing a French horn, but stood a few times to chime in with cymbals and —adding an Afro-Cuban accent to the melting pot at one point — claves during a creatively arranged section of “Fantasy on Yankee Doodle.” He said the set list, while consistent in its Americana theme, changes somewhat each year and offers players a challenge.
“This is very serious band literature,” he said. “This is not your high school, middle school pep band stuff.”
Among the dozen songs performed this year, for instance, was “Places, USA,” a medley of popular songs about more than 20 states, including snippets from “Deep in the Heart of Texas,” “(Back Home Again In) Indiana” and “California, Here I Come.”
Anderegg said that, given the absence of a midnight fireworks show, “I’m going home and taking a nap so we can be in the parade tomorrow.”
Swaying along with the traditional concert finale of “Stars and Stripes Forever” were Teal and Matthew Hanson along with three of their kids, who were visiting from Fairbanks to watch a fourth kid, Eve Payton, 16, play trumpet as part of the band.
The family said they’re spending the Fourth of July weekend in Juneau and, since there’s no official fireworks show Friday night, they’re planning their own eye-opening nightcap.
“We're gonna jump in Auke Bay,” said Teal Hanson, with her husband noting it’s a chance for the whole family to take part in a weekly ritual he did long ago as a student at the University of Alaska Southeast.
• Contact the Juneau Independent team at editor@juneauindependent.com.
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