Orrville Fire in the Sky opens with parade

Shams Mustafa
·4 min read

The long wait for Orrville Fire in the Sky Celebration kicked off with the Independence Day parade on Tuesday.

For 39 years, the Orrville Firefighters Association has carried the tradition of the five-day festivities. Although the festival is only about a week long, preparation for the celebration is all year long. “As soon as we wrap up the festival next week we start looking at next year, budgeting, and things we want to change or improve,” OFFA Vice President Craig Hostetler said. “We work on it all year; it never stops,” he said.

OFFA gathers donations from community members through the Fill the Boots located at different businesses in town. “We also send sponsorship packages for businesses with different levels,” Hostetler said.

Fireworks, the star of the show.
Fireworks, the star of the show.

The entire fire department participates to create a series of enjoyable events for Orrville families and other neighboring areas such as Dalton, Rittman, and Wooster. In addition, other city departments like Orrville Police, Utilities, Water, and Street Department help in different ways to maintain a safe environment for everyone.The praise includes volunteers and the families of the firefighters. Chris Parker, president of the OFFA, said that volunteers from out of the fire department along with their wives and children help to make it one big floating event. “Our children help with the softball fields, and our wives will prepare lunches or dinner for everybody working,” Parker said.

“We have the fire department to run as well so if there is a call or anything like that then our families will work in the fields along with our volunteers,” he said.

The United States flag lead the Orrville independence day parade Tuesday afternoon.
The United States flag lead the Orrville independence day parade Tuesday afternoon.

The preparation starts a day earlier to set up the carnival rides and run a few inspections for water and safety. Then at 7 a.m. of the day of the parade, OFFA places trash boxes along the route and makes sure that the streets are closed appropriately for the parade route.Around 200 units lined up at 2 p.m. at the Orrville High School parking lot. “Lining up the parade can be very challenging sometimes,” Parker said. The OFFA guides the units to move in the designed route. At 4 p.m. all units marched slowly in turns. Some marched in their vehicles, some on their horses, some on their bikes, and others by doing back and front flips.

This high wheeled bicycle brought back memories.
This high wheeled bicycle brought back memories.

Participants of all ages came to march in the parade with their families. Dressed in red and blue tiaras, 2-year-old Addylin and her 1-year-old sister Oaklee came to celebrate after winning first place in the Orrville Pageant. Their mother, Alexis Terenberger, said they have been coming to the parade for years and this time it was very exciting to participate.

The Orrville Fire Department was one of the first participants in the parade.
The Orrville Fire Department was one of the first participants in the parade.

As most of the local businesses in Wayne County joined the parade, Angela Marmet, co-owner of the Onsite Physical Therapy Solutions, LLC, said she has been marching for the last six years with her friends and family. Despite living in Stark County, Marmet likes to give back to the communities they serve. “We have been providing physical therapy services in Orrville for 15 years now,” Marmet said. “Our Orrville patients are very loyal and we like to give the community back,” she said.Tillison Fitness Warehouse is back this year with a larger fleet partnering with Illusions screen printing. “It’s always great to be here,” said owner Thad Tillison. “This year we have a bigger group.”

It was the first year for the League of Women Voters of Wayne County to take part in the parade. President of the league, Kathy Helmuth, said they wanted people in Orrville to know about their organization and get them involved in their activities.

A bubbling calliope traversed the parade route.
A bubbling calliope traversed the parade route.

As vehicles passed, sharing buckets full of candies with the crowd, Jen Smith of Rittman sat on her chair watching the parade passing while her daughter gathered some sweets. “ I’ve been coming with my daughter for 10 years now,” Smith said. “We watch the parade, go to the Carnaval, then watch the fireworks,” she said.

The Orrville life guard float did not disappoint in cooling down the crowd with water soakers.
The Orrville life guard float did not disappoint in cooling down the crowd with water soakers.

It’s a tradition for Orrville resident Gwen Landgraff and her family to attend the parade. “It’s an awesome show, but the sense of community and how everybody pulls together is what makes it great,” Landgraff said. Her two children enjoy picking up the candy and going on the carnival rides.The Fire in the Sky celebration will end on Saturday, July 8, with live music by Cleveland’s Rock Bar at 8 p.m. at Orr Park. After the completion of the softball tournament championship game, the OFFA fireworks show will begin.The OFFA is looking forward to celebrating its 40 year anniversary next year. “40 is a milestone year we will try to go bigger and better next year so, look for little more than what has been in the past,” Hostetler said.

Candy coming your way!
Candy coming your way!

This article originally appeared on The Daily Record: Orrville Fire in the Sky opens with parade