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Folks do things a little differently in Everglades City.

At few times is that more evident than at the town’s annual Fourth of July parade, held Sunday.

“Our fireworks are the best,” said Mayor Sammy Hamilton Jr. “That’s the reason we don’t do it the same day as everybody else, because ours are the best and we want everyone to be able to come and see ours.”

While Linda Beale isn’t convinced that she can’t get the same “ooh-ahh” factor elsewhere, she said something does set the celebration apart from others.

Beale, a Fort Lauderdale resident who has had a vacation home in Everglades City for four years, said the laid-back atmosphere of the celebration keeps her family coming back.

“It’s fun for the kids,” she said. “They like the parade because they have candy, they like the bounce house. And I like that no one cares how you look.”

She reclined on a towel at the side of the road Sunday with her son and three grandsons, waiting for the stream of cars, trucks, tractors and ambulances to roll past. Parade participants came in every form, from Mayor Hamilton and his family, riding in a 1957 El Dorado convertible, to the 7th Florida Infantry Confederate Reenactors, marching down Broadway Street with muskets over their shoulders.

The parade, a true testament to the off-beat, pioneering spirit of Southwest Florida, gave reverence to both the American flag and the Confederate flag. The sound of the reenactors’ guns firing mingled with sirens from Ochopee Fire trucks as the parade wound through the streets.

A cannon fired by the soldiers over the city square kicked the parade into high gear — and woke up any onlookers who might have gotten too comfortable.

“It’s personal, it’s a small town and people will get into it,” said resident Bob Wells, who acted as the emcee for the event. “It’s a town with a lot of spirit, a lot of kick and a lot of go.”

Wells, a fifth-generation Southwest Floridian, has lived in Everglades City all his life. He said the parade is just a natural extension of the city’s distinct local flavor.

After the parade, the revellers turned to the city’s park for a celebration that had the feel of one big backyard barbecue. Children squirmed down an inflated water slide, neighbors chatted over hot dogs and dragonflies flitted through the thick afternoon air.

“(It’s special) because it’s Everglades City,” said Hamilton. “We always do put on good parades. A different kind — more local.”