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An estimated 2,000 people celebrated the Fourth of July at The Lake in Luverne Thursday.
The event — the fifth in a row — was marked by sunshine, blue skies and busy shorelines and lake water.
“There were tons of kids and adults in the water throughout the day,” said Chamber Director Jane Wildung Lanphere. “All the kayaks were out all the time.”
Luverne residents Mike and Traci Davis, Curt and Marilyn Bloemendaal and Billy and Missy Cowell shared their kayaks for the day, and The Lake visitors put them to good use.
Lanphere said bingo under the tent was a popular addition to this year’s event, with 150 cards sold and 100 percent payouts.
In addition to bingo, organizers paid out nearly $2,000 in prize money for various competitions, such as dock dog jumping, log rolling, beanbag tournament, sandcastle contest, and Quaddleball, which is new this year.
“It’s basically a fun four-square game on a beach with a paddle and pingpong balls,” Lanphere said ahead of the event.
And each year the event, hosted by the Luverne Area Convention and Visitors Bureau, continues to grow.
“We have more sponsors this year,” Lanphere said.
“Thanks to our generous sponsors, we are able to continue to offer more activities and have an even bigger fireworks show.”
The $11,000 for fireworks meant the display was bigger and better than ever.
The fireworks began at 10 p.m. over The Lake, with many audience members streaming the show live on social media.
Lanphere recognized Local certified fireworks technicians Jonathon Kurtz and Jeremy Lehman for their efforts.
“They worked all day to put the show together,” she said. “We probably had over 5,000 people enjoy the fireworks show at 10 p.m. There were cars all over the place.”