Americana decor displays cue the day’s celebration: Fourth of July.
Like every year, the Coronado Fourth of July parade brought out thousands of residents and visitors to the island to partake in the annual celebration, commemorating the birth of the United States.
“There’s so many people from out of state who even come here,” said Nick Ricchio, a parade participant with PAWS of Coronado. “This is just the city to be in.”
Holding her 3-year-old daughter, Arizona resident Nicole Dotson was among the first time visitors in Coronado to celebrate the Fourth of July.
“Fourth of July is my favorite holiday,” said Dotson. “I love America and my husband’s active duty. We support America and I want to teach my children to do that too. It’s a fun holiday, it’s in the middle of summer, everything is wonderful about it.”
“I just saw the sheriff go by and that was pretty cool,” said first-time attendee Dezianna Pattmon, a San Diego resident, during the parade in Coronado. “We live in the greatest country and so it’s just celebrating our freedom and just embracing everybody that allows us to be here today.”
Early birds
Coronado residents Phil Swartz, Rikki Navarro, Carol Warren and Ranger Van Arsdale were among local families who made sure they secured a spot on the Orange Avenue median before 5 a.m. to enjoy the parade as they have in years past.
“I’ll be right here on the curb next to the little kids,” said Navarro chuckling. “I still won’t give up my spot for them.”
Navarro, who grew up attending the parade, said she secured a spot for 20 people in her family around 4:30 a.m. that day.
“I love the Fourth of July because the whole town just blooms and is excited about it,” she said.
“I love the people that come in from out of town too and make it fun, like the ladies with the little horses,” she added. “The classic cars. I love that too!”
On the next block, Ranger Van Arsdale, 11, could not wait for this day to come.
“I was up all night,” said Van Arsdale, who helped his family with early morning setup along the Orange Avenue median before 5 a.m. “I was scared that they were going to leave me … I jumped out of bed, got dressed, [and] put on my Fourth of July hat.”
Aiming for a spot near the Coronado Public Library, Van Arsdale’s family could only find an open spot on the third and fourth block of Orange Avenue.
“It was unbelievable to actually find a spot,” he added.
But after 10 a.m., Van Arsdale sat surrounded by family in the heart of Coronado.
That’s what celebrating the Fourth of July means for Van Arsdale – enjoying time with family, he said.
“This is my home and I love it here,” said Van Arsdale.
Swartz agrees.
“That’s the most important thing: Family and enjoying each other’s company,” he said. “It’s a beautiful thing to see everybody out here, celebrating.”
Before 5 a.m., Swartz had pulled a red wagon carrying chairs and his canopy to secure the spot on the second and third block — the same spot he first watched the parade from in 1975.
“I’ve been all over the world,” said Swartz, a Navy veteran and retired pilot. “And there’s no other place like the United States, and there’s no other place like Coronado.”
For Swartz, who said he looked forward to the USS Midway Museum float, the holiday is about “celebrating our country and our freedom.”
Andrea Disotell echoed Swartz’s sentiments about celebrating freedom.
“That’s what it’s about, you know, all the people that gave their lives for us to be able to be free and be here,” said Disotell. “Parades are not something that you typically see or do unless it’s an important moment. And so it shows how important this event is by having the parade. … That people value and appreciate independence.”
A day of camaraderie
The parade welcomed 125 entries this year.
Cierra Holtz, a handler for one of the horses with Scripps Miramar Ranch, has attended the parade for the last few years.
“The committee that supports this parade just organizes it so nicely,” said Holtz, who decorated the American Saddlebred’s hooves with silver star sparkles. “The community that attends this parade makes it super successful. I would just say it’s the community around here that makes the parade so unique.”
Also in the parade was the Coronado class of 1975, celebrating a 50-year reunion.
“Even though I haven’t lived here [in Coronado] 50 years, I’ve been here every year …I’ve missed one because we were out of the country, but every year,” said Sue (Mercer) Hockenmaier, who was part of the CHS class of 1975 float. “It’s like a pilgrimage, our whole family comes here every 4th.”
Coronado resident Jim Gallagher attended the parade with his daughter Katie and their dog, Boo.
“It’s a fractionalized time, so it’s really nice to see everybody kind of come together and celebrate the country,” he said. “It could be very easy to lose the fact that we’re actually all on the same team, and today is a great day to remind everybody.”
Another participant was Ricardo McKillips, a Temecula resident and member of the Mustang Club of San Diego.
“The Fourth is always pretty important. It’s our independence,” said McKillips, a veteran who is a second-year parade participant. “The Fourth of July parade is such an iconic type of parade. … It means a lot to me.”
