GREEN BAY (NBC26) — Fireworks, food trucks and family fun marked Green Bay's Fourth of July tradition as it returned to the city.
The annual Fire Over the Fox celebration wrapped up Friday night with a spectacular fireworks display, but festivities began much earlier in the day as thousands gathered along the Fox River.
"I'm not here to do nothing too crazy, I mean, I feel like Fourth of July people are like all aboard, going crazy! Like drinking and having tons of fun," said Momodou Mbye, a Green Bay Blizzard player who attended the event.
For many attendees like Mbye and his teammate Rod Williams, the celebration offered a taste of home.
"I miss home so much, so for me being from Mississippi, I just wanna try, like, the funnel cakes and stuff," Williams said. "That's the closest thing to the south I feel like I'm going to get here so I'm definitely ready to get some of that!"
Food was a major attraction with more than a dozen food trucks and tents lining the Ray Nitschke Memorial Bridge.
For vendors like Bob Stahl, head chef at Minzo's Kitchen, the event is a cherished tradition.
"Ah, it's just a fun day. It's a good celebration, see all the people, there's always fun people to watch and talk to," Stahl said.
The main attraction, however, was the fireworks show that lit up the night sky. Many spectators, like Mitch Vilhauer who traveled from South Dakota, arrived hours early to secure prime viewing spots.
"Been coming here for this for probably about 12 years," Vilhauer said.
His sister, Pam Belden of Green Bay, has an even longer history with the celebration.
"We've been coming here since my son, who's now 43, was just a kid," Belden said.
So they always know the perfect spot to watch the show.
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