Press Release

Date: April 23, 2014

Contact: Shannon Howell

Phone: (540) 658-4893

Email: showell@staffordcountyva.gov

www.stafford350.com

(540) 658-4894

Flame Thrower, Marching Bands and Mayor of Stafford, England Join Celebration
Stafford, VA – Thousands of people are expected to converge in “downtown” Stafford to honor the County’s 350th anniversary during its first ever Founders Day event on Saturday, May 3 and Sunday, May 4. Presented by the Free Lance-Star Companies and organized by the North Stafford Rotary Club and the County’s 350th Anniversary Blue Ribbon Committee, the two day celebration will start on Saturday at Stafford Hospital with a hometown parade and finish at Brooke Point High School with a special History Square and the Stafford Schools Fine Arts Festival. The parade will take place on Saturday, but History Square and the Fine Arts Festival will run both Saturday and Sunday.

The parade will be divided into different eras representing Stafford’s beginnings, the American Revolution, Civil War, World War I and World War II, and modern times and the future. Special guests will include the Mayor of the Borough of Stafford, England, Angela M. Loughran, who will be visiting Stafford with a group of visitors from her community in honor of Stafford’s 350th anniversary.
The schedule for Saturday, May 3, follows:

• 9:00 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. – Parade (starts at Stafford Hospital and ends at Brooke
Point High School). Highlights include:
• Stafford County High Schools Marching Bands
• Mayor of Stafford, England
• Two World War II Veterans, John Kessler and Charles “Chuck” Neighbor, both
survivors of the storming of Normandy Beach
• Reenactors
• Antique Military Vehicles
• Miss Stafford County
• John Smith Longboat Replica

• Noon – 5:00 p.m. – History Square, Brooke Point High School
• World War II Flame Thrower
• 1812 Cannon
• Dinosaurs of Stafford County
• Photos with George Washington and Abe Lincoln
• The Patawomeck Tribe’s Native American community including a 40-foot
longhouse
• Meet John Smith and Pocahontas

• Noon – 5:00 p.m. – Stafford Fine Arts Festival, Brooke Point High School
• The festival will feature students’ art exhibits and student performances

• 1:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. – Via Colori Street Painting Demonstration, History Square

Both History Square and the Fine Arts Festival will also run on Sunday, May 4, from noon – 4:00 p.m.

Parking will not be available along the parade route. Visitors may park at the satellite parking lots listed below. Parade goers should allow extra time for parking and riding one of the shuttle buses that will provide transportation to and from the parade.

• Parking Lots
• Stafford Government Center
• Courthouse Road VDOT Commuter Lot
• Brooke VRE Lot
• Route 17 VDOT Lot
• Disabled Parking Lot - Stafford Elementary School

• Shuttle Buses
• Shuttles will be available to transport visitors from these parking lots to and from the parade and Brooke Point High School on both Saturday and Sunday throughout the day.
• From 7:30 a.m. - 6 p.m. on Saturday and 11 a.m. - 6 p.m. on Sunday

More details about Founders Day including a map of the parade and the events at Brooke Point High School are available at www.Stafford350.com or on Facebook at Stafford County 350 Anniversary and Twitter @StaffordCo350. Interested individuals can also email info@stafford350.com for more information.