The Sentence They Waited a Lifetime to Hear

At a Quarter to Six

This week the nonpartisan commission planning the nation’s two hundred fiftieth anniversary launched Giving Fourth, a national push to make the Fourth of July a day of service. Cedar Valley’s mayor, Caleb Mercer, tells the story of the woman who has quietly set the chairs at the senior center, unpaid and unthanked, every morning for nine years. The front porch is open. Readers of the Cedar Valley News are gathering on Facebook to respond to the editorials, share their own stories, and join a conversation built on respect, honesty, and no party lines. Come sit with us: https://bit.ly/40p8jKy

This Sunday, We Fast for the Freedom of Strangers

On Sunday, the fifth of July, the day after the country turns two hundred fifty, Dan Larson’s church has invited people of every faith to fast and pray for religious freedom throughout the world. He explains why the freedom worth fasting for is the freedom you extend to the neighbor who believes nothing like you. The front porch is open. Readers of the Cedar Valley News are gathering on Facebook to respond to the editorials, share their own stories, and join a conversation built on respect, honesty, and no party lines. Come sit with us: https://bit.ly/40p8jKy

When the Fireworks Are Canceled, the Fourth Is Not

Wildfires and budgets are canceling Fourth of July fireworks across the West. Chloe Papadakis, who plans Cedar Valley’s celebration, says the towns losing their fireworks are about to discover the day was never the fireworks; it was the gathering. The front porch is open. Readers of the Cedar Valley News are gathering on Facebook to respond to the editorials, share their own stories, and join a conversation built on respect, honesty, and no party lines. Come sit with us: https://bit.ly/40p8jKy

A Woman Brought Me a Broken Chair and Asked for a New One

A woman brought Lars Olson a cracked oak chair and asked where the new ones were. Days later, at a watch party in his ward, he heard Donny Osmond sing Start Again and understood the difference between starting over and starting again. The front porch is open. Readers of the Cedar Valley News are gathering on Facebook to respond to the editorials, share their own stories, and join a conversation built on respect, honesty, and no party lines. Come sit with us: https://bit.ly/40p8jKy

The Fourth of July Is on Sale

The chains turned America’s two hundred fiftieth birthday into a promo code: seventeen-seventy-six burgers, two-fifty beers. George Khan reads the deals from behind his counter, and answers them with a longer table instead of a lower price. The front porch is open. Readers of the Cedar Valley News are gathering on Facebook to respond to the editorials, share their own stories, and join a conversation built on respect, honesty, and no party lines. Come sit with us: https://bit.ly/40p8jKy