JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Before the big celebration downtown Saturday night, the City of Jacksonville threw the first-ever Freedom Fest to kick off the America 250 celebrations Friday evening.
“For those who have fought for it, freedom has a different taste than everybody else,” said Sal Gonzalez.
Action News Jax spoke with Gonzalez, a retired US Marine who lost his leg while serving in Iraq in 2004, before the festivities kicked off.
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“I fell into a coma and when I woke up my parents were there and as they shuffled out, in walked Wounded Warrior Project,” said Gonzalez.
Gonzalez is now a nationally-known country music artist, and spokesperson for the Wounded Warrior Project.
Friday’s first-ever Freedom Fest was made possible thanks to a $100,000 donation from the Wounded Warrior Project.
The event featured performances from Gonzalez, the Navy Pride Band and other big acts like Big Engine.
“I’m just super excited that I get to be a part of this. Wounded Warrior Project asked me if I could come down. I cleared everything off my schedule cause I just love Jacksonville, I love the community, I love my country and I’m just happy to be here,” said Gonzalez.
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The city’s Military Affairs and Veterans Department hosted the festivities, which also featured a patriotic light and music show, food trucks and even free apple pies for the first 1,000 attendees.
“We’re creating some memories tonight so that 50 years from now when we roll into America 300, you can think back and say, gosh, I remember America 250,” said Harrison Conyers, Director of the Jacksonville Military Affairs and Veterans Department.
Conyers explained with America set to celebrate a monumental anniversary, the city wanted to do something special.
“We know that the very foundations that our freedoms stand on were laid by our veterans and our active-duty military. And we make sure that everything we do, that we recognize and we thank them for their sacrifice,” said Conyers.
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Gonzalez argued, what better way to celebrate than an event to thank our service members past and present for the sacrifices they’ve made to get us to this point.
“I love that the city is acknowledging that and putting this on for our veterans and letting them know that they’re special too cause they are. And that’s what makes America beautiful,” Said Gonzalez.
If you weren’t able to make it out Friday, Gonzalez will also be playing at Riverfront Plaza Saturday night as part of the city’s main America 250 celebration.
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