By Amanda Raymond

amanda.raymond@salisburypost.com

SALISBURY — The Salisbury All-America City Delegation will be off to Denver, Colo., this weekend, but before they go the city will be hosting a send-off celebration on Wednesday.

The send-off will be in the City Hall parking lot, at 217 S. Main St., at 5:30 p.m.

There will be free hotdogs, popcorn and ice cream. There will also be music, with a marching band performing.

All community members are invited to attend the send-off celebration.

Salisbury has been chosen as one of the 20 finalists for the 2016 All-America City competition. The award recognizes neighborhoods, villages, towns, cities, countries, tribes and regions that involve community members in innovative, inclusive and effective efforts to help solve challenges. Ten communities are given the title every year.

Salisbury won the title before in 1961.

The Salisbury delegation will be in Denver on Friday through Sunday for the final stage of the competition.

This year’s focus for the competition was the well being of children, so the city submitted the Norvell Theater, the Knox co-principals program and Fit For Motion, a nutrition and physical fitness program, in its application.

Along with city officials, students and adults who were involved in the three programs will attend the finals competition. The city has also invited the Mini Funk Factory Marching Band.

As of this past weekend, more than $18,000 had been raised to help with the $30,000 cost of sending the delegation to the competition.

The Rowan County Chamber of Commerce has created a GoFundMe account to allow people to donate funds. The link is available on the chamber’s website, www.rowanchamber.com.

Donations can also be mailed to the Rowan County Chamber of Commerce, P.O. Box 559, Salisbury, NC, 28145-0559. All checks should be made payable to Salisbury All-America City.

Contact reporter Amanda Raymond at 704-797-4222.