With a round purple grape in hand, Albert Walton ducks out his front door, staring off to the west.

They whoosh and hiss and crackle, and always in the end they go boom — well, except for those dreaded duds.

Robyn Fowler, vice president and branch manager of United Missouri Bank in Carthage, choked back tears when told she was the latest recipient of Irene VanGilder’s “Hugs and Handshakes” ministry.

Fireworks will still fill the skies and food will still be plentiful at Carthage’s Municipal Park and the Carthage Golf Course on Saturday, barring rain or lightning.

Pop a quarter into a fish feeder and watch the reaction of the hungry fish upon tossing the food atop the water’s surface.

The public is invited to join in a traditional vespers memorial rite at 6:15 p.m. Sunday, July 5, at Battle of Carthage State Park on east Chestnut at the railroad near the east city limits.