We’re gonna celebrate!

On July 4, 1776, the Continental Congress formally adopted the text of the Declaration of Independence, drafted by Thomas Jefferson and a committee of five. The date became our anniversary date. So, on the Fourth of July of this year, we will celebrate 250 years of our independence as a nation.

This is definitely a time to celebrate! In 1776, we decided we no longer wanted or needed to be dependent on another country, and we wanted to write our own rules and laws. Since that time, we have been Americans, not always agreeing with each other, but one thing we hold dear. America!

We are the nation so many people of the world have wanted to have as their home, and have come to be a part of it. We have freedoms here that many nations do not have, and perhaps will never have. We have been both revered and despised, and we know our freedoms do not come without cost. Yet, for 250 years we have held together as a nation.

The Madera Tribune will celebrate with our community in honoring our country of 250 years. On July 4, we will launch a new website, and will also publish a special edition of The Madera Tribune. This special edition will not only honor our country for its long-standing government, but will remind us of other historic events of our great nation. It will honor all who call themselves Americans.

But the celebration will not end on the Fourth of July. An anniversary of 250 years must be celebrated for longer than one day. Throughout the remainder of 2026, the Madera Tribune will publish a series of articles and editions with stories, photographs, and remembrances from past events. These will be reflections from the history of our country and our community, from Madera’s early beginnings through the decades that shaped the community we know today.

I am super excited about the celebration of our country, and I am honored to be working at the Madera Tribune when this celebration will occur. The Tribune as a newspaper has seen 134 years of this nation’s history, and in our upcoming special editions, you will read about events that happened throughout that history, as reported by The Madera Tribune.

So, let us all raise our glasses and make a toast to the best country in the world. Happy 250th Anniversary to the United States of America! May we have many more blessings to come, and many more years to enjoy those blessings.

God bless America!

— My love to all,

Nancy

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Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, and the people whom he hath chosen for his own inheritance.

— Psalm 33:12