On the Fourth of July, the Sauk Prairie Veterans of Foreign Wars, Lachmund-Cramer Post 7694, hosted the second annual community read of the Declaration of Independence at Veterans Park in Prairie du Sac. Twenty-seven members of the community read a designated section of the Declaration of Independence and the names of the signers. Upon completion, Sauk Prairie VFW member Fred Thompson, center, explained that Congress in December 2013 authorized veterans not in uniform to use the formal military hand salute during the Pledge of Allegiance ceremony. Vietnam veteran Thompson executed a military hand salute as he led the community recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance. Lastly, the Sauk Prairie Middle School choir closed the patriotic event with a community singing of “America,” also known as “My Country ‘tis of Thee.”