MILLTOWN – The usual pomp and circumstance of the Milltown Fourth of July parade, which has been a tradition since the 1920s, will not happen this year due to the novel coronavirus pandemic.
David Potter, president of the Milltown Fourth of July Committee organization, read a letter at the Borough Council meeting on May 11 to update the council on the activities.
“In the best interest of the health and public safety of our residents, volunteers, emergency staff, town employees, visitors and vendors, we will not be able to have … the one-mile fun run and 5K sponsored by the Knights of Columbus, the parade, the park festivities and the fireworks,” he said. “Please know that this was not an easy decision to make, but in the best interest of our town, it was the right one to make.”
Potter said the committee’s decision comes with the agreement and support of Mayor Trina Mehr, the borough council, the Milltown Police Department and the borough’s Office of Emergency Management.
Although the usual festivities will not go on, Potter said the committee “cannot let our nation’s birthday go uncelebrated.
“So in preparation for, and on the Fourth of July, in continuing with our tradition, we will be having events and activities around the town that will adhere to the social distancing guidelines,” he said.
Councilman Randy Farkas, who had served as chair of the Fourth of July Committee for six years, noted the events on Independence Day are a year in the making.
“While it’s disappointing that it won’t go on as we know it, it doesn’t take away from the efforts of David Potter and the Fourth of July Committee because they put in a good 10 months of planning on it until the world stopped two months ago,” he said, urging residents to rally around the committee to make it a special day.
Mehr said she appreciated the committee’s careful consideration of the circumstances surrounding the Fourth of July activities.
The committee will provide more information on the activities and events on the organization’s website at Milltown4thofJuly.org and on social media in the coming weeks.