July 4 parade set to take flight with ‘Juneau’s Winged Heroes’; Douglas parade features disc golf club
- Mark Sabbatini
- Jul 3
- 3 min read
Updated: Jul 3
No grand marshals for downtown parade this year as invitees decline to participate
The eyes on the skies won’t end with Juneau’s traditional fireworks show set to begin at 11:59 p.m. July 3, as the theme for the annual Fourth of July parade through downtown Juneau starting at 11 a.m. Friday is "Juneau’s Winged Heroes."
"It's a nod to all of the aerial individuals who support the town of Juneau," Alice Nestler, lead organizer for the Juneau Festival Association, said Wednesday. "We just wanted to appreciate some of the people that are not often recognized, whether it's commercial or tourism or rescue."
The parade will be largely similar to the one residents who’ve lived in Juneau for decades are familiar with, featuring dozens of floats, bands and other participants making their way from the Douglas Bridge through downtown and back. One difference is there will be no grand marshals, breaking a long tradition, although Nestler said organizers followed their usual process of asking for recommendations and then reaching out to the people suggested.
"The people that were named we contacted, and we either did not hear back or the individuals that did respond respectfully declined without reason," she said.
The ability to reach out to possible grand marshals while also organizing the rest of the parade was more difficult this year because only two volunteers were involved — far fewer than past years — and Nestler said she was sidelined with medical difficulties some of that time.
However, Nestler also said there are numerous new entries this year, or participants who are returning after many years. They include the Juneau Public Library and a new Village Public Safety Officer vehicle being exhibited by the Central Council of the Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska.
"This year we have something called the Delegation Of Patrick, or the Patrick Delegation," she said. "It's just a bunch of guys named Patrick in the parade."
Volunteers are still being sought for the preparations and the parade itself, Nestler said.
"We need help putting up the no-parking signs in the parking lot downtown at Eighth and Egan," she said, describing some of the tasks still to be done. "We need help in the morning for setting up and decorating the float that's a sponsor float — it's actually a little skiff that we decorate every year and we put the banners around it."
Juneau’s other Fourth of July traditions will also take place largely as they have in years past. Among the scheduled events are:
July 3 • 5:30-7:30 p.m.: Soapbox Car registration, show, trials. St Ann's Ave., Douglas.
• 6-8 p.m.: Community picnic and watermelon-eating contest. Shelter No. 1, Sandy Beach.
• 7-8 p.m.: Juneau Volunteer Marching Band presents a pre-fireworks concert conducted by TJ Hovest. Sealaska Plaza.
• 11:59 p.m.: Fireworks launched from Gastineau Channel.
July 4
• 11 a.m.: Fourth of July parade through downtown Juneau.
• Noon: Annual Sandcastle Challenge (high tide: 9:11 a.m.; Low Tide: 2:47 p.m.).
• Noon: Douglas Volunteer Fire District hot dog sale, Douglas Fire Hall.
• 2 p.m.: Douglas Fourth of July Parade (assemble at 1:30 p.m.). Grand marshals are the Juneau Disc Golf Club.
• 3 p.m.: Final Soapbox Challenge, St. Ann’s Ave., Douglas. Divisions: Ages 5-6, 7-8, and 9-10 (registration required)
• 3 p.m.: Field Events, Savikko Park Field No. 1.
• 3:30 p.m.: Make & Break Fireman's Hose Race, Douglas Fire Hall.
• 3:30-9 p.m.: Bands on the Beach, Pioneers Pavilion. Bands include Sound Crew, Rain Dogs, 99% and the Fort Knox Band.
• 10 a.m.-5 p.m.: Society for Creative Anachronism, field four at Savikko Park. Performances throughout the day.
• Contact Mark Sabbatini at editor@juneauindependent.com or (907) 957-2306.
