Arlington July 4th parade organizers say celebration is resuming ‘stronger than ever’
Arlington’s longest-running traditional event is an opportunity for Paul Fulks and his employees to test their creativity.
Fulks, president of 3Di Sign and Design, spent June 22 with his team as they carved a plastic foam dragon’s head and maneuvered the figure onto a flatbed trailer.
The project is nothing new for the business — the business on West Main Street is replete with holiday-themed props, materials for large-scale projects and earlier creations. Though the team is crafting only one float for the parade, Fulks’ team typically makes three or four ffor the Independence Day Parade — and more for other community events.
“Most of these things are not money-makers,” Fulks said. “They’re done as a break-scenario just in order to help the group that’s putting it together, that wants to be seen. It’s good to give back to the community, so we all enjoy that.”
The float — created to advertise the Dragon Boat Festival Race for Education in September in Viridian — will be part of the parade’s return to the route since the coronavirus pandemic sidelined festivities in 2020. The event begins at 9 a.m. July 5 and will run through downtown and UT Arlington’s campus.
Will Busby, the parade’s event coordinator, said the tradition is coming back “stronger than ever,” after it was canceled last June, as North Texas contended with an influx of COVID-19 cases.
Parade organizers carried the same theme, “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness” from last year. Busby said the theme has taken on a deeper meaning after more than a year of social distancing, civil unrest and economic hardship.
“That theme really just drives home that in America, we come together, we work together, even in the hard times,” Busby said.
Decades of celebration
Arlington’s Independence Day Parade is a multi-generational affair.
The parade has been around since 1965, when former city council member Dottie Lynn and Church Women United organized a bicycle parade that pedaled around Randol Mill Park, according the the parade website. The event is now considered the largest Fourth of July parade in Texas and among the largest in the United States. Judges come in from out of town to decide award-winning entries.
Fulks’ team has a couple of award-winning entries from years’ past, including a float from the Arlington Chamber of Commerce recognizing “stars” in business, and another depicting Betsy Ross sewing together an American flag.
“It’s been a lot of fun to step in and help people who don’t have time to actually jump in and spend months or don’t have the space to do it,” Fulks said.
Generations of spectators, many of whom have prime real estate to watch the parade from Abram Street, have made their way to the barricades over the years, Busby said, and he’s looking forward to seeing the familiar faces.
“We get to wave at them, and we know they’re going to be there in their spots,” Busby said.
Jeannie and Will Deakyne, two military veterans, have another reason to celebrate during the festivities: the couple will celebrate their 20th wedding anniversary with a parade float. The couple married July 4, 2001, and celebrated with a float in the parade that year, according to a press release.
The parade would have celebrated its 55th anniversary in 2020, but organizers canceled at the last minute, despite receiving approval from the governor’s office on safety measures. The cancellation marked the first in the parade’s history. Organizers for the 2021 parade created backup plans, but lower case numbers and vaccine availability encouraged them to return in full force, Busby said.
“We’re going to line the streets safely and we’re going to get to celebrate our nation’s independence downtown,” he said. “There’s not a better place to do it.”
