Mt. Morris’ Little Miss & Mister Firecracker contest kicks off start of Let Freedom Ring festival

MT. MORRIS — The Let Freedom Ring festival kicked off Wednesday, July 2, with the crowning of Little Miss Firecracker and Little Mister Firecracker.

A total of five contestants took part in the event held on the Warren Reckmeyer bandshell on the downtown Campus. Contestants for Little Miss were Zuraya Ritt, 4; Aniyah Eggleston, 4; Lucy Skoumal, 4; and Esther Skoumal, 6.

Harrison Taylor, 6, was the lone entrant for Little Mister.

Ritt was chosen Little Miss and Taylor was named Little Mister.

There were no entries for King & Queen.

The Little Miss and Mister contest was followed by an ice cream social and a performance by the Kable Concert Band.

Upcoming festival events include:

Friday, July 4: Fireman’s Breakfast, 7-11 a.m. at the fire station; Fly In/Drive In Breakfast, Ogle County Airport; silent auction, College Hall; patriotic program at the bandshell, 12:30 p.m.; Illinois Freedom Bell ringing, 1 p.m.; parade, 2 p.m.; block party, front lawn of former DLR Junior High, 105 W. Brayton Rd., food vendors, bounce houses, live music by SHINDIG! 6-8 p.m., patriotic music by the Kable Concert Band, 8 p.m.; and fireworks, at dusk.

Saturday, July 5: silent auction, 4-6 p.m., College Hall; car show, 4:30-8:30 p.m.; crafters/vendors, 4:30-8 p.m.; Pork Producers’ sandwiches, 4:40-8 p.m.

Kiddie Parade, 6 p.m.; kids’ water fights, 6:45 p.m.; and live music by Bagshot Row, 6-9 p.m., bandshell.

For more information, visit www.lfrmtmorris.com.

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Let Freedom Ring Little Miss and Mister Firecracker, Hunter Taylor, 4, and Zuraya Ritt, 4, (center) shout out Let Freedom Ring with their fellow contestants, Lucy Skoumal, 4, Esther Skoumal, 6. and Aniyah Eggleston, 4, after the contest on Wednesday, July 2, 2025 in Mt. Morris. Also pictured are contest officials Heidi Nicholson and Abi Fletcher, the 2024 Let Freedom Ring Queen. (Earleen Hinton)