Community invited to take part in Panaca Pioneer Day celebration

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Residents and visitors are encouraged to take part in Panaca Pioneer Day and enjoy one of Panaca’s longest-standing community traditions. A full slate of community events is planned as Panaca prepares to celebrate the event later this month. Along with the annual parade and community activities, this year’s celebration will offer opportunities for residents to get involved before the festivities begin and celebrate the town’s pioneer heritage.

Photo by Leslie Ostronic
Panaca is preparing for another busy weekend of Pioneer Day festivities.

The annual Pioneer Day celebration, hosted by the local wards of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, will take place Saturday, July 25, bringing together residents and visitors for a day of family activities, community traditions and fireworks.

Before the celebration begins, community members are invited to participate in Town Clean-Up Day on Saturday, July 18, beginning at 8 a.m. Volunteers are encouraged to help clean and weed Main Street, the elementary playground, the football field, church grounds and other public areas as Panaca prepares to welcome visitors for Pioneer Day weekend.

Organizers are also seeking entries for the Pioneer Day Parade, encouraging businesses, organizations, families and community groups to participate. This year’s parade theme, “Upon a Noble Past We Build,” celebrates Panaca’s pioneer heritage and those who continue to shape the community today. Those interested in entering a float may contact parade organizer Janessa Blackburn at 435-592-4491.

Pioneer Day commemorates the arrival of Mormon pioneers in the Salt Lake Valley on July 24, 1847. Across Utah and parts of Nevada, communities with pioneer roots have long observed the holiday by celebrating the perseverance, faith and community spirit of the early settlers who helped establish towns throughout the region. In Panaca’s oldest permanent settlement, the annual celebration has become a tradition that honors both the town’s history and the people who continue to call it home.

Festivities on July 25 will begin early with the Dynamite Wakeup 5K Fun Run, followed by a flag raising and breakfast, children’s races, arm wrestling and a three-point contest. The day will continue with a kids’ money scramble, a pioneer devotional, the annual parade, a silent auction and dinner, lawn games and a cornhole tournament before concluding with a fireworks display at 9 p.m.