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The town of Windsor had been known for hosting a popular Fourth of July Celebration each year, but the COVID-19 pandemic interrupted that tradition.

Now, town staff and some of the town’s citizens are working diligently to restore the celebration to its former status.

“As I called it, we’re in a rebuilding mode,” Windsor Mayor George Stubbs said in a Thursday, June 29, interview.

This year’s iteration of the celebration is a major step forward in the rebuilding process because after a scaled-back return in 2022, the event will now look a lot more like its pre-pandemic form, including fireworks that will close out the night.

The town of Windsor will hold its 31st annual Fourth of July Celebration on Tuesday, July 4, from 2-9:30 p.m. at the Wesley F. Garris Event Park and surrounding area.

An announcement on the town of Windsor website states that this year’s event will include craft vendors, food trucks, a kid zone, live music from area artists, the Greg Willis Cruise-In for specialty vehicles, and fireworks.

The vendors and food trucks will be selling their products, but everything else at the event, including admission, will be free.

Opening ceremonies, which will include brief remarks from Stubbs, will be held at 2 p.m., Carson Robertson will perform from 4-5 p.m., the cruise-in will begin at 5 p.m., Brasswinds will perform from 6-9 p.m., and the fireworks display will take place at 9 p.m.

“The cruise-in is going to be a Greg Willis Cruise-In in recognition for the amount of time and effort that he put into the previous Fourth of July celebrations,” Stubbs said, referencing Willis, who also served for years on the Windsor Town Council.

Stubbs expressed appreciation for the 2023 Fourth of July Celebration’s sponsors, which he said include area businesses and also individuals.

He also noted he could not say enough about the event-planning work done by Windsor Town Manager William Saunders, town staff, the Windsor Police Department and a committee of citizens to reform the town’s Fourth of July Celebration.

“They have been steady at it, working on it, and I think they’ve done an outstanding job, and definitely my opening remarks are going to reflect some of that,” Stubbs said.

He noted that he is excited for the celebration.

“We’d like to invite all of the town’s people and neighbors and family,” he said, adding that he has heard that some people from Suffolk and from North Carolina below Franklin may attend. “They remember the fireworks from years ago.”