Temperatures hit the upper 90s, but it didn’t seem to impact the good mood of the crowd that turned out for some old-fashioned fun, enjoying the All American Bash in Oakdale on Saturday, June 29.

Hosted by the Oakdale Enrichment Society – with plenty of support from sponsors – the pre-July 4 celebration featured a late afternoon downtown parade and then a full line-up of events in Dorada Park. There were free games for kids, informational booths and displays, balloon art, some food trucks, cold treats and beverages, the Lions Club operating a food booth and the chance to visit the adjacent community pool for a quick swim.

Music at the pavilion kicked off with popular local group Weekend at Jimmy’s as residents settled in with blankets and lawn chairs. Many brought their own picnic baskets and coolers full of snacks, with an afternoon and evening of activities on the schedule.

The parade, though smaller than in past years, featured some traditional entries, with Mayor Cher Bairos – who also serves as vice president of the Oakdale Enrichment Society – aboard a float. There were a couple of equestrian entries, some patriotically decorated vehicles, the Mid Cal Blue Star Moms, local businesses including Tango Kennels, Oak Valley Hospital District, Astoria Senior Living and more.

Driver Linda Crawford and passenger Nina Wright, both of Oakdale, cruised the parade route in style on Crawford’s CanAm Spyder, which features two wheels in the front and just one in the back.

“It’s a lot of fun,” Crawford said, smiling.

Leading the way for the parade this year were Devyn Scott, his girlfriend Hannah Lawrence and Logan Atkinson; Scott and Atkinson were longtime friends of the late Dustin Pace, who passed away in June following a motorcycle accident.

“I feel honored,” Scott said of driving the lead truck in the parade in his friend’s memory.

Once the parade made its roundabout loop and returned to its initial starting point, participants then headed to Dorada Park for more festivities.

After Weekend at Jimmy’s got the audience warmed up, they welcomed the headliner for the event, Kristen Brown, who was a recent contestant on The Voice. She wowed the crowd with her powerful vocals and made her way onto the grassy area in front of the pavilion several times to interact with the crowd.

A member of her musical entourage, keyboardist and singer Melyssa Musser, had earlier performed the National Anthem to officially get the park activities underway.

Another highlight of the event was the drone show, which took the place of a traditional fireworks display. Presented with funding from a grant provided through the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District, the coordinated show featured 200 drones. They were set up in a parking lot adjacent to the Gladys Lemmons Senior Center on East A Street, with a crew from Salt Lake City-based Open Sky Drone Light Shows on hand to put on the show.

Crew leader Evan Petrie – who is an aerospace engineer – explained that they met with Oakdale Enrichment Society and city officials to put together a very specific show, one that was tailored both to the July 4 holiday and Oakdale’s heritage.

“Weeks and weeks have gone into this event, mainly in the form of the design work,” Petrie explained. “A lot of patriotic themes, a lot of Oakdale themes so it’s very custom to the area, to the season, which is awesome. Basically, anything you can think of, with the right number of drones, we can put it in the sky.”

Petrie added the drone shows are becoming extremely popular, especially in the Western U.S. where wildfires are an ever-present threat.

“Our first year we did about 25 shows, our second year we did 100,” said Petrie. “Now, our third year, we’re looking at doing over 150.”

There were representations of Oakdale’s iconic clock tower, which also served as the inspiration for the OES logo, along with the Love Oakdale logo, a cowboy aboard a bucking bronco, the state of California outline and – in observance of July 4 – the Statue of Liberty. Music was part of the choreographed show as well, and the drones also at times gave the appearance of being bursting fireworks.

All the activities were a hit with the large crowd and OES President Lisa Ballard said she couldn’t have been happier with the turnout and the event itself, with the drone show a definite highlight.

“This is absolutely fabulous,” Ballard said. “Thank you to all of our sponsors, the sponsors that make it so we’re able to do this; also thanks to the generosity of the community of Oakdale so the community can get together, to come out here and have a free concert, a free concert in the park … it’s a great night.”