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Your Hometown Parade
2008 Parade Awards
Fire Departments Best – Dalton Fire Department
2nd Place – Cheshire Volunteer Fire Dept
3rd place – Lenox Fire Department
Music 1st place – Lakeside Lutheran High School
2nd place – Col. John Chester Fife & Drum
3rd Place – Moodus Fife & Drum
Best Color Guard – Lakeside Lutheran High School
Cars 1st place – 1964 Corvette owned by Francis Bourdon
2nd place – 1963 Thunderbird owned by Tom & Joanne Lahey
3rd place – 1922 Star Touring Car owned by John Foster
Floats Grand Prize – Most Outstanding Float – St Agnes
Theme Award – Best Theme Presentation – Oldies but Goodies
Mayor’s Award – Best Commercial Entry – BMC
Grand Marshalls Award 1st place – Berkshire Carousel
2nd place- Council on Aging
3rd place – Boy Scouts
Veterans Memorial Award – Marine Corps League
First Time Entry 1st place – Berkshire Revival Fires
2nd place – Pittsfield High School Orchestra
3rd place – Jiminy Peak
Youth Award – Best Youth Group Float – Greylock Federal
Credit Union
Judges Special Awards 1st place – Pittsfield Piston Poppers
2nd place – Kripalu
3rd place – RSVP
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The Honorable Grand Marshall
for the 2008 Pittsfield
4th of July Parade was
David Grover
Thank you David!
Parade treasurer, Peter Marchetti said, “David Grover is a national figure whose talent has been recognized with many awards over the years. Children in Berkshire County grew up listening to the fun, uplifting music of the Big Bear Band. David has such a natural ability to teach children and their families through his music and we thought with our theme this year, A World of Music, it was a perfect fit.”
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One of the 10 Best Parade Venues in the Country!
This article appeared in the Berkshire Eagle on Monday June 30, 2008.
Monday, June 30-Berkshire Eagle PITTSFIELD — As the Pittsfield Fourth of July Parade gets ready to step off on Friday, it got a high-profile boost in the pages of USA Today, which listed it among the 10 best parade venues in the country.
"We were thrilled," said Peter M. Marchetti, treasurer and coordinator of this year's parade. "It made us feel great."
In its Friday edition, USA Today asked Steve Schmader, president and CEO of the International Festival and Events Association, to list his favorite 10 parades.
Pittsfield was joined by Washington, D.C., Racine, Wis., Philadelphia, Gatlinburg, Tenn., Balboa Island, Calif., Bristol, R.I., Greeley, Colo., Belton, Texas, and St. Louis.
"Once billed as 'Your Hometown Parade,' " the paper said, "the Pittsfield Fourth of July Parade dates back to 1824, when the procession consisted of Revolutionary War veterans and politicians riding in horse-drawn carriages. Today's modern parade has floats, balloons and marching bands, but still retains the small-town, patriotic flavor of its roots."
USA Today, with a circulation of more than 2.2 million, is the nation's most-read newspaper. The theme of this year's parade is "A World of Music."
There will be 19 marching musical acts, and all 23 floats will play either live or taped music. The six giant helium balloons will likewise have a musical theme, right down to Laa-Laa, the Teletubby.
The parade begins at 10 a.m. Friday and will follow its traditional route, beginning on South Street at the Housatonic Street intersection, proceeding around Park Square, up North Street and ending at Wahconah Park on Wahconah Street.
Here is the link to the orginial story in USA Today
http://www.usatoday.com/travel/destinations/10great/2008-06-26-fourth-of-july-parades_N.htm
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History of Our Parade
The Pittsfield 4th of July Parade has an historic reputation dating back to 1824, when the procession consisted of Revolutionary War survivors, patriots, politicians and horse-drawn carriages. The parade was held off and on by various citizen groups until 1947 when it was taken over by the Pittsfield Permanent Firemen's Association. Under the firemen, the parade grew in size and popularity but was discontinued in 1976.
After a bleak 1977 with no parade, a small group of volunteer citizens obtained $2,000 seed money from the City of Pittsfield and held their first parade in 1978. Over the years, this independent, non-profit organization -- the Pittsfield 4th of July Parade Committee, Inc. -- has grown in size, spirit, and determination, and with it, the parade has grown in size, quality, and popularity.
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