Canonsburg parade marches on
CANONSBURG – On Independence Day, Canonsburg becomes the biggest little borough in Pennsylvania. At least 45,000 people are expected to line the streets for the annual July 4 parade celebration, and more than 120 organizations will queue up to march, dance and sing down Pike Street.
Some traditions will stay the same for the second-largest Independence Day parade in the state, like neighbors along the route decorating and placing chairs – and anchoring their sitting spots – 48 hours before the start of the parade.
The tradition residents had observed for decades saw chairs placed out weeks ahead of the parade in a sort of territorial showdown on who would get the best seats. But a revised borough ordinance enacted three years ago, citing public safety, only allows chairs to be placed two days out from July 4.
Yet, a new chair addition will come this year, too. The winner of an essay contest put on by corporate sponsor Range Resources will sit high atop a new VIP chair. Cassie Allison, a teacher at McGuffey, won the “What the Fourth Means to Me” essay contest, with her entry topping 125 submissions.
“My grandma is 95 years old and has lived on the parade route since the first parade,” read Allison’s essay, “and in 30 years I have never missed the parade. Now I can’t wait to continue the family tradition with my 9-month-old beautiful baby girl. Let’s always remember that the parade is a spectacular event that creates unforgettable memories, but the true meaning of the 4th is that we live in the land of the free because of the brave.” Allison and her family will be treated to a catered breakfast and primo placement on the parade route outside the municipal building.
The chair was placed outside the Canonsburg borough offices Wednesday, and Mayor Dave Rhome said it’s a teaser of what could be a bigger chair – as high as 16 feet – built for next year’s parade.
“The chair elements are integral to the spectacle and celebration of the parade, as people have personalized their own and become neighborly through this event. You plop your chair down, and the person next to you – whom you’ll be talking to for three hours – they’re no longer a stranger,” Rhome said.
The day’s activities start at 7:45 a.m. with the “32nd Annual Whiskey Rebellion” 5k Race. Church bells will ring at 9 a.m. The parade starts at 10 a.m., and a majority of Pike Street will be closed. Music and free family activities will be held in Town Park starting at 1:30 p.m., and there will be free admission to the pool. Fireworks blast off at 9:45 p.m.
Despite corporate sponsors putting up thousands for the parade and fireworks, the theme for this year’s parade, according to parade committee member Bill Brooks, is volunteerism.
“Washington County Food Bank is our group grand marshal this year, and we really built the volunteer theme around that,” Brooks said. U.S. Navy veterans and others who served the country will be honored on some of the parade floats.
“We have so many volunteers that make this happen, but service members are kind of the ultimate volunteers. So we’re honoring that, too. We’re a borough of only 9,000 people, but for some years to have up to 60,000 people stop out, we must be doing something right,” Brooks said.
Rhome said the tradition and national attention to Canonsburg’s parade has been earned by locals.
“In its inception, it was a way for families to celebrate Independence Day and stay close to home without having to get on the highways. Now, it lets us open our doors to the region and show what the borough is all about. But we can’t lose track of what we’re really here to celebrate: our independence and the fact that people fought for us to remain free,” Rhome said.