Well another year has passed, and with it our much anticipated Fourth of July celebration.
Hard to believe that the three-day celebration took so much work. The town has already started planning for next year's celebration. You would be surprised at how many hours are put into these celebrations unless you have been involved in the planning.
A group of volunteers gather throughout the year and schedule all the bands, fire departments and special groups, etc. involved in the parade, as well as contacting all the businesses, churches and organizations to see if they are interested in doing a float. They have to line up judge's (wouldn't want that job), and then the day of the parade, they have to work most of the day placing markers for the participates to line up.
They also have to contact the amusement folks to line up the carnival, order all the fire works, work with all the organizations, order all the porta potty's, etc. The list goes on and on.
We here in Fair Haven are very lucky to have a dedicated group of folks who give so freely of many hours of their time to preserve this celebration that has gone on for many years.
Over the years other organizations, such as the American Legion and the fire department, took on this task, but as time went on, help got scarce and the cost of things kept rising and these organizations had to hand it on to others.
This was the reason for the forming of our Save Our Fourth Association (SOFA) committee.
They have done an excellent job since taking on the responsibility. Through many hours of donated time and with help from all the donations sent in by our residents, we have so far been able to keep up with all the expenses of this venture. They are very thankful for all your donations and for all the folks that volunteer to work these events. It does take many hands to be able to succeed.
I swear I think that we here in Fair Haven are truly blessed. Another Fourth celebration and everything went great. I was a little worried on Thursday evening; I thought for sure we would get rained on in the parade. But even though we got an occasional shower here and there, each day went well.
The parade on Thursday night was very nice; we had a lot of comments from folks who thought it was great.
The winners for the floats were: Doctor Hanford Award went to Fair Haven Community Church; Business winners: first, Scruples; second, Bayside Grocery; and third, Little Sodus Inn; Organizations: first, Carpenter Rolling Review; second, Sterling Trail Tamer, and third, R.C. Soccer Rage.
Friday the town was busy with all the different functions around town. It was reported that the smorgasbord at church was also a good success.
And of course Saturday started off with the 5k run, which benefited Hospice, and next was the Bayside Cruisers Classic car show. They had 84 registered cars, and boy they sure had some cool cars there. They also had a Kidde parade Saturday; they said they had a least 80 bikes or so. Good for all those kids.
Of course the day ended with the Wall of Fire, which I was told by many was really great, followed by the fireworks show. What a nice display they had. Everyone I talked with said they thought it was one of the nicest they have had. I sat at home on the porch and watched, and I have to agree, they were very nice.
And such a great evening, with that slight breeze we had; it kept those pesky mosquitoes away.
Of course Saturday, July 7, was the start of the Renaissance Festival. They sure do generate a lot of business into the area. Between them and all the Fourth doings it was almost impossible to get off the side streets. It will be that way for the next six weekends. The worst times are from early morning until noon and then from 5 to 8 p.m.
I know how frustrating it can be, but it is a small price to pay for the much needed business brought in.
Also on Saturday evenings until Labor Day Weekend the American Legion Band will hold its band concerts in the Village Park on Main Street. They always draw a big crowd. It's a great way to catch up on some socializing and enjoy a hot dog or two.
I have to say I was impressed by how well the public restrooms were. One of my many undertakings is to clean the public restrooms here in Phillips Park for the summer, and during the Fourth of July week it is always the worst week for the facilities. But I want to thank everyone who used them for keeping them picked up. It made my job a lot easier.
Nancy Webster lives and writes from the village of Fair Haven
A group of volunteers gather throughout the year and schedule all the bands, fire departments and special groups, etc. involved in the parade, as well as contacting all the businesses, churches and organizations to see if they are interested in doing a float. They have to line up judge's (wouldn't want that job), and then the day of the parade, they have to work most of the day placing markers for the participates to line up.
They also have to contact the amusement folks to line up the carnival, order all the fire works, work with all the organizations, order all the porta potty's, etc. The list goes on and on.
We here in Fair Haven are very lucky to have a dedicated group of folks who give so freely of many hours of their time to preserve this celebration that has gone on for many years.
Over the years other organizations, such as the American Legion and the fire department, took on this task, but as time went on, help got scarce and the cost of things kept rising and these organizations had to hand it on to others.
This was the reason for the forming of our Save Our Fourth Association (SOFA) committee.
They have done an excellent job since taking on the responsibility. Through many hours of donated time and with help from all the donations sent in by our residents, we have so far been able to keep up with all the expenses of this venture. They are very thankful for all your donations and for all the folks that volunteer to work these events. It does take many hands to be able to succeed.
I swear I think that we here in Fair Haven are truly blessed. Another Fourth celebration and everything went great. I was a little worried on Thursday evening; I thought for sure we would get rained on in the parade. But even though we got an occasional shower here and there, each day went well.
The parade on Thursday night was very nice; we had a lot of comments from folks who thought it was great.
The winners for the floats were: Doctor Hanford Award went to Fair Haven Community Church; Business winners: first, Scruples; second, Bayside Grocery; and third, Little Sodus Inn; Organizations: first, Carpenter Rolling Review; second, Sterling Trail Tamer, and third, R.C. Soccer Rage.
Friday the town was busy with all the different functions around town. It was reported that the smorgasbord at church was also a good success.
And of course Saturday started off with the 5k run, which benefited Hospice, and next was the Bayside Cruisers Classic car show. They had 84 registered cars, and boy they sure had some cool cars there. They also had a Kidde parade Saturday; they said they had a least 80 bikes or so. Good for all those kids.
Of course the day ended with the Wall of Fire, which I was told by many was really great, followed by the fireworks show. What a nice display they had. Everyone I talked with said they thought it was one of the nicest they have had. I sat at home on the porch and watched, and I have to agree, they were very nice.
And such a great evening, with that slight breeze we had; it kept those pesky mosquitoes away.
Of course Saturday, July 7, was the start of the Renaissance Festival. They sure do generate a lot of business into the area. Between them and all the Fourth doings it was almost impossible to get off the side streets. It will be that way for the next six weekends. The worst times are from early morning until noon and then from 5 to 8 p.m.
I know how frustrating it can be, but it is a small price to pay for the much needed business brought in.
Also on Saturday evenings until Labor Day Weekend the American Legion Band will hold its band concerts in the Village Park on Main Street. They always draw a big crowd. It's a great way to catch up on some socializing and enjoy a hot dog or two.
I have to say I was impressed by how well the public restrooms were. One of my many undertakings is to clean the public restrooms here in Phillips Park for the summer, and during the Fourth of July week it is always the worst week for the facilities. But I want to thank everyone who used them for keeping them picked up. It made my job a lot easier.
Nancy Webster lives and writes from the village of Fair Haven
