Glenside July 4 Parade

To celebrate America’s 236th birthday, the nonprofit Greater Glenside Patriotic Association will hold its three-tiered, admission-free celebration for Abington and Cheltenham residents.

A decision to postpone the parade until Saturday will be made by 2 p.m. tomorrow.

The day starts with a children’s celebration at 10 a.m. at Renninger Memorial Park, at Keswick Avenue and Waverly Road, with a decorated bike and stroller parade competition, followed by field sports at 10:30 a.m. Children’s refreshments will be served at noon. The children’s portion of the celebration continues to be supported by Abington Commissioner Carol Gillespie and the William R. May Funeral home.

Next … is the parade.

The parade, one of America’s oldest, consecutively run July 4 parades, will start at 4 p.m. at the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 676 on Jenkintown Road, and will cover a 1.5-mile route. The route will head east along Jenkintown Road, and will continue south on Easton Road, ending at Waverly Road.

Grand marshal for the 2-plus hour parade will be community leader and booster Jon D. Fox, an Abington resident and local attorney. A prolific fundraiser for the patriotic association, Fox is being recognized for his July 4 volunteer work and long-time community service as a former Abington Township Ward 7 commissioner, state legislator in the 153rd District, Montgomery County Commissioner; and a two-term U.S. Congressman from Pennsylvania's 13th District.

The Reviewing stand for the parade is again on the front steps of St. Luke the Evangelist Roman Catholic Church at Easton Road and Fairhill Street. Featured parade attractions will include assorted bands and mobile musical units; military and veterans groups; community and civic organizations; police/fire/emergency rescue representatives; dance troupes; local churches; political associations; service clubs; area businesses; and novelty entries and floats.

The celebration's finale will be a fireworks exhibition at 9 p.m. — the fireworks will be fired from the Abington Township maintenance yard on Florey Lane, adjacent to athletic fields and parking areas of the Abington High School Campus. 

Contributions to help fund the $55,000 Independence Day Celebration are tax deductible, should be made payable to the patriotic association, and are being accepted in care of Susquehanna Bank, PO Box 9009, Jenkintown, PA, 19046.

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Information courtesy of Bill Hall/Greater Glenside Patriotic Association