Saturday, July 04, 2009

Shepherdstown 4th of July Parade and Community Picnic

Everyone is invited to this year's Independence Day parade and community picnic in Shepherdstown on July 4.

This year's parade will have a new time and route, and the picnic will have a new venue. The parade will step off at 3:00 p.m. at the top of German Street and proceed all the way to the Rumsey Memorial Park on Mill Street. The picnic will be held right afterwards at the Rumsey Park, and last until 9:00 p.m.

Admission to the picnic will be free. Those who come will be able to bring their own food and beverages or buy a wide variety of food and beverage items there. Local charities will handle all the food and beverage sales, and all the proceeds from those sales will benefit those charities.

The afternoon portion of the picnic will feature many different children's activities, including a watermelon-eating contest, various races and competitions, a fun-room bounce, and a puppet show by Joe Santoro and his Wonderment Puppets. The evening will feature musical entertainment, with the Speakeasy Boys performing from 5:30 to 7:00 p.m. and Rudy and the Blue Fish performing from 7:30 to 9:00 p.m.

Because parking at the Park is very limited, picnic goers will be asked to park in the Shepherd University lot at the intersection of Princess and High Streets and walk the two blocks to the park.

This is the third year for the parade and picnic, which were initiated in 2007 by the Rotary Club of Shepherdstown to provide a wholesome, family-oriented, local Fourth of July celebration. This year the Shepherdstown Parks and Recreation Committee is joining in cosponsoring the two events, and the events are also aimed at showcasing improvements that have been undertaken this spring at the Rumsey Park.

These improvements, which have been a joint project of the Committee and the Rotary Club, have included erecting new signage, extending electrical service to the park, and trimming back trees and bushes to provide better views of the river and the Park's monument. The goal is to encourage greater public use of this historic park, which was established in 1915 to honor local inventor James Rumsey, who launched one of the first working steamboats on the Potomac at Shepherdstown in 1787.

The Committee and the Rotary Club are also planning to cosponsor another community event at the Park the Saturday before Labor Day, September 5.

For more information, contact Carl Moore at 304-876-6176 or cvmoore@frontiernet.net.