Mission Statement

  Are you ready to be a Hero?  You can you know.  I am writing to you on behalf of the American side of the Friendship Festival.  Did you know that a small group of civic minded individuals organize the whole 5 day event? They are all volunteers and work on behalf of the public good.  With pride in their hearts they donate their time & energy to create a Family oriented patriotic celebration free for everyone in America and Canada to enjoy. You can become one of them too.  Here’s how.

  Mission Statement

To provide a forum for the peoples of the United States and Canada to celebrate their historical relationships while enhancing community pride, economic development and cultural awareness.

Fifty-five years strong! Since the late 1950’s the 21^st Ward Independence Day Association has been celebrating the “4th at Riverside”, a community wide celebration of Our Nation’s Birth and Independence. Started in 1987, Fort Erie Festivals has enjoyed over 20 years of growth and local impact on both sides of the Niagara River as it celebrates one of the globe’s longest friendships. In the mid 90’s we joined forces and now we ARE the Friendship Festival!

Located at the east end of Lake Erie, organizers in Fort Erie, Ontario, and Buffalo, New York, annually co-host a series of exciting events over a period running from the last weekend of June until just after July 4th. The international flavor of the FRIENDSHIP FESTIVAL brings together a collection of food, live music and entertainment; cultural, arts and crafts activities and a host of events for children and their extended families. Thousands of people attend, from the Golden Horseshoe through Western New York and beyond, as each year’s festival continues tradition by offering a truly international event that showcases the “Niagaras” of the Binational Region.

HANDS ACROSS THE BORDER

A gathering of friends from both sides of the border meeting on the Peace Bridge July 4.

More than 600 are volunteers needed