Mayflower will be celebrating the 4th of July on Thursday, July 4th (coincidentally!) by enjoying the parade. Starting at 5:00pm near the Mayflower campus, just to the southeast at Hamilton and High streets, the parade travels west three blocks to Broad Street and then turns north to the southwest corner of The Mayflower Community campus and on to downtown.
The theme this year is “Stars and Stripes.” The Parade Marshall will be local volunteer and activist, Howard McDonough.
To celebrate, a group of Mayflower residents has been involved in planning a Mayflower float entry. The highlight will be a 14-foot replica of the Mayflower ship, complete with 16-foot tall masts and muslin sails. Using Dan Agnew’s shop, Dick Vogel, Darwin Kinney, and Lyle Roudabush, along with Dan have been engaged in shipbuilding for a few months now. The replica ship will be pulled by Lyle in his pick-up on a trailer loaned by Lowry Trailers of Grinnell.
Photos below show the final stages of the shipwork.
Numerous residents will be walking along and riding in Mayflower golf carts. They will be handing out goodies. “Throwing of candies” is illegal, so if you want a tootsie roll, you will have to entice a parade walker to come to you!
Popular in last year’s parade, a bubble-making machine, will accompany the entourage in a Mayflower golf cart.
Please help us keep the observation area clear between 1st Avenue and the Montgomery building by not parking on Broad Street in that area. Parking is available in the Mayflower lot at the northwest corner of 1st and Broad.
If you are not already involved in the fun, you can be. Just show up by 4:30pm at the front entrance of Mayflower Health Center to be assigned a resident in a wheel chair for pushing or to offer your arm for walking. The prime viewing spot is a block and a half to the west near the corner of 1st and Broad. Many volunteers will be needed.
— Bob Mann, Sales & Marketing Director
