Fairhope Fourth of July barbecue to benefit Baldwin County veterans, American Legion

FAIRHOPE, Ala. ( WKRG ) — Cars filled the parking lot on Independence Day at the Eastern Shore American Legions Post 199 in Fairhope just to get a taste of their barbecue.

Post 199 had its annual barbecue sale to raise money to help the veterans in Baldwin County. Volunteers said they have been setting up for the annual Fourth of July barbecue sale, concert and fireworks for almost 24 hours in preparation for the big celebration.

They said they cooked over 400 plates of food and normally sell out within two hours. All of the proceeds from the barbecue sale will go to the Fairhope American Legion and to help local veterans.

Although everyone came out for the barbecue, attendees said that more importantly, they came to honor American soldiers and veterans.

Ed “JuJu” Lessard worked as an air traffic controller for the United States Airforce and is now a member of the American Legion Riders, a motorcycle group that represents the legion. He said his favorite part about the Fourth of July is the fact that he is a veteran and is able to spend his holiday at the Legion with other veterans reflecting on the holiday.

“Thinking about the veterans, thinking about the ones that have passed before us, thinking about the ones that are serving now overseas,” Lessard said. “A lot of people forget that we still have military members overseas serving.”

Lessard comes from a military family and explained that’s why Post 199 is like his second family and means so much to him.

“My dad’s a Vietnam veteran. I’ve got two sons in military, so I don’t usually make it to the beach. It’s usually right here at the American Legion,” Lessard said.

Others at the Fourth of July celebration said they spent the day being thankful for American freedom.

“What we like to do is just really reflect and remind my kids about what the day is and don’t let them forget and then then we enjoy, you know, just family time,” U.S. Navy Veteran Sydney Cody said.

In addition to barbecue, the East LA FadeAway will be playing live music at the Eastern Shore American Legion on Thursday afternoon. Members of the Post 199 also said that on a clear night, people can usually see fireworks from Fairhope, Daphne, and even Mobile from their beach.

Anyone is welcome to come down to Post 199 beach for the celebration, regardless of whether they are a veteran or not.

For more information about the American Legion Eastern Shore Post 199 visit their website and for more information about local veteran programs visit the Arabella website .

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