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After the Continental Congress approved a “Resolution of Independence” on July 2, 1776, John Adams wrote to his wife Abigail and predicted that July 2nd would become a “great America holiday:”
I am apt to believe that yesterday will be
celebrated by succeeding Generations
as the great anniversary Festival . . . .
It ought to be solemnized with Pomp and
Parade, with shews [shows], Games,
Sports, Guns, Bells, Bonfires and
Illuminations from one End of this
continent to the other from this Time
forever more.
As it turned out, Adams was particularly prescient in foreseeing how future generations of Americans would celebrate the anniversary of their Independence. What he failed to foresee, however, was that the holiday would occur not on July 2 but on July 4, the date when the final wording of a Declaration of Independence was approved and signed by every member of the Congress and sent to the printer for publication to the new citizens of the “thirteen United States of America.”
This year Avalon’s Department of Recreation has planned six events over three days to commemorate America’s 250 years of Independence. In many ways these events will mirror what John Adams predicted. While hopefully there will be no “Guns” or “Bonfires,” there certainly will be “Pomp and Parade with shews, Games [and] Illuminations.”
It is appropriate that the first event will be a reading of the Declaration of Independence on Thursday, July 2 at 6:30 pm from the stage at Surfside Park. Following the reading, the stage will host a high-energy show by the group American Soul, which will entertain with R&B, soul and Motown hits from the 60’s, 70’s, 80’s and beyond.
Friday, July 3, will see the first of two parades. It will be a decorated Golf Cart Parade that will start at 6:00 pm at the 29th Street parking lot. The theme for the parade is “USA”, and prizes will be awarded to the three best decorated carts. Later, at 7:00 pm in Surfside Park, there will be a special concert by the tribute band Nashville Express Americana, which will perform modern hits and classics that capture the heart and soul of country music.
On Independence Day itself, Saturday, July 4, a patriotic-themed Boat Parade will shove off at noon from the Avalon Yacht Club and wend its way through the Borough’s back bays. Avalon’s celebration of the “great American holiday” that John Adams predicted will conclude with “Illuminations” visible all over town—a spectacular fireworks display from the beach at 30th Street beginning at 9:00 pm.
As we mark America’s 250th anniversary with these events, let us also keep in mind and reaffirm the founding principles that underlie our Independence: that “all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights,” and that “governments … derive their just powers from the consent of the governed.”
Below you will find much more Avalon news and information, including a preview of AHLOA’s Annual Membership Meeting on August 8 and a proposed delay in the REAL rules, so please continue to scroll down.
On behalf of the Officers and Trustees of AHLOA, I wish you all a Happy Fourth of July.
Warren Faulk
President
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