It’s ‘Blooming With Freedom’ on the 4th

Sydney Anderson is the winner of the 2026 Blooming Prairie Old-Fashioned Fourth of July button contest.

The fourth-grader is the daughter of Nick and Kelsey Anderson, of Blooming Prairie. Her brother Crosby is in sixth grade at BP Intermediate School.

Sydney’s design, called “Blooming With Freedom,” features the Statue of Liberty surrounded by fireworks, with colorful flowers and American flags scattered across the bottom of the pin.

This year’s celebration will be held July 3-5.

“I really like to create and draw,” she said of her decision-making process.

She won $20 in BP Bucks, and will receive the first button that rolls off the assembly line.

Sydney also received a certificate proving she is the designer of the winning button – and plenty of accolades from her peers in Jenna Volgarino’s classroom.

The annual contest solicits artwork from every BP fourth-grader who wishes to enter. Karen Peterson, executive director of the BP Area Chamber of Commerce, narrows the competition to three buttons from each class – then opens the voting for the nine finalists on the Chamber’s website.

The $5 button could more than pay for itself, with several new perks for people wearing one:

• 5% off purchase of $10 or more at Vandal’s Family Market, from June 1-July 5;
• $3 off haircut at Steve’s Old-Fashioned Barbershop through July 4, one per person;
• $3 off haircut at Great Clips-Austin through July 4, one per person;
• $1 off each round of mini golf throughout the weekend, one per person;
• $1 off each beverage at the Beer Garden

The parade is set for 2:30 p.m. July 4; fireworks will be at 10 p.m. that night at Victory Field.