Mars Fourth of July parade hits sweet spot among community, children
MARS — Much like the troops at Bunker Hill, 11-year-old Samone O’Bryon had the look of fierce determination in her eyes as she clutched the steering handle of her makeshift hoverboard-turned-go-kart.
Samone had one thing on her mind as she waited with her twin sister, Savannah, before the borough’s Independence Day parade kicked off.
Candy.
“I want a full bag,” Samone said.
Samone and Savannah were among many participants during the late-afternoon parade Tuesday, July 4. Residents lined the parade route, even spilling onto the outskirts of the street when room on the sidewalk ran out.
“They just line up street to street,” county Commissioner Kevin Boozel said.
The Independence Day parade, while paying homage to the birth of America, also was a way for the community members to celebrate one another.
“I think it obviously brings out a lot of the community,” Boozel said. “I think this has grown every single year, and with adding the tractors and the firetrucks, it just gets people back into the community and lets them know that everybody’s part of a unit.”
The parade featured the Mars Area School District marching band, whose rendition of “God Bless America” could be heard throughout the borough. The parade marks the beginning of the band season.
“We try to hype them up,” assistant band director Aaron Wagner said. “The Fourth of July parade is a very big event there. The streets are always crowded with a ton of people, and just everyone’s excited to be out.”
Despite Melissa Wolf’s front yard being prime real estate along the parade route, that did not stop her daughter, Lillian, 7, from setting up early to watch the action.
“Her dad reminded her that today was the parade,” Wolf said, “and they sat here an hour ahead of time waiting for it to start.”
The parade, while centered on children, also had something for adults to enjoy as well.
“It’s really cool because I found out about stuff that I didn’t know existed, ” Wolf said. “Like I found out today that there’s a robotics club.”
The parade led off with children decked out in their red, white and blue outfits riding on various modes of transportation such as bikes, scooters, skateboards and even a few hoverboards-turned go-karts.
“I just made a little cage on a hoverboard,” said Bill O’Bryon, father of Savannah and Samone. “It can go up to 8 miles per hour. It’s just like the ones you see the kids standing on.”
Some parents, such as Ryanne Palermo, elected a more-traditional route for her daughter Amelia, 7, and Josie, 4, to participate in this year’s parade.
“We saw the bikes (three years ago) and they were excited because they knew how to ride bikes,” Palermo said, “and they wanted to be part of the action.
Amelia offered a different reason from her mom’s for why she wanted to take part of this year’s parade.
“To get candy,” Amelia said without hesitation.
