The annual Claremont Fourth of July Celebration has been a time-honored tradition in the city for nearly 70 years. The celebration consists of a morning 5K run, pancake breakfast, opening ceremonies, festival and parade, and ends with a bang at the fireworks show.

Memorial Park is transformed as performers rove the grounds, providing color and fun for people of all ages. Stage entertainment will include a variety of bands and entertainment, and there will be demonstrations throughout the park, including clowns, strolling bands and jugglers.

Enjoy a good ol’ fashioned pancake breakfast sponsored by the Kiwanis Club from 7 to 10 a.m. The breakfast helps raise funds for a variety of organizations and programs supported by Kiwanis. Tickets—going for $5—may be purchased at the booth. The full breakfast includes pancakes, sausage, juice, milk and coffee. Proceeds from the breakfast help support AbilityFirst, the ReadMe program, Shoes that Fit, Habitat for Humanity, the Monday Night Concerts in the Park, Best BET and other youth and community activities.

If still available, fireworks tickets will be sold in conjunction with the breakfast and may still be available at the information booth at 10:30 a.m.

Handicapped parking and convenient drop-off is available. Drivers with handicapped placards may park on Eighth Street between Indian Hill Boulevard and Yale Avenue. Additional parking will be available on parts of Yale Avenue (signage will direct you).

Saunter through the booths gathered on the grass at Memorial Park. To locate a vendor, peruse the booth vendor list on page 11 of this edition and locate the number and location on the festival map. The Independence Day Committee information booth will be located just north of Garner House.

Should the need arise for first aid, a station will be located on Yale Avenue, between Eighth and Tenth Streets, just east of Memorial Park.

A reminder of holiday rules and regulations

As a reminder, the city of Claremont prohibits all fireworks. People in violation of this law may be issued a citation. As an alternative, the city offers its annual fireworks show on July 4.

Overnight parking for holiday guests

If you are having guests stay with you overnight during the holiday weekend, please remember to get an overnight parking exemption if they will be parking on the street.

The Claremont Municipal Code prohibits parking any vehicle on a city street for more than one hour between the hours of 2 a.m. and 6 a.m. Residents are allowed three exemptions per month.

Overnight parking exemptions may be obtained by visiting the city’s website at www.ci.claremont.ca.us or by calling the Claremont Police Department. Telephone exemption requests will only be accepted between 7 a.m. and 10 p.m. daily by calling (909) 399-5411 or (909) 399-5415.

Online exemption requests will only be accepted until 3:30 a.m. the morning of the exemption request.

Freedom 5000

Enjoy the beautiful tree-lined streets of Claremont as you cheer on your friends or grab your own sneakers during the Freedom 5000 run.

The course begins in Memorial Park and winds through the scenic streets of Claremont’s Village, then on through the picturesque Colleges. See the course map at left. Bib pick-up begins Sunday, July 3 from 3 to 6 p.m. and continues on Monday, July 4 from 6 to 7:15 a.m., with the first 1K kids race starting at 7:30 a.m. The 5K run/walk starts at 8 a.m. Medals will be given to the first three in each age division, and all children (ages 12 and under) who participate in the 1K will receive a medal.

On Sunday, July 3 and the day of the race, registration is $40 for adults; kids ages 12 and under are $20. Groups of 10 or more will be given a $5 per person discount. All on-site registration will be done online and city staff will have computers on site to complete registration. There will be no registration forms.

Don’t miss the Kiwanis Club pancake breakfast

The Kiwanis Club of Claremont will serve a pancake breakfast at Memorial Park near the band shell from 7 to 10 a.m. on the Fourth of?July.

Tickets, which include pancakes, sausage and juice or coffee, sell for $5 each and may be purchased the day of the event.

According to the Kiwanis Club’s a most recent newsletter, “Pancake Man” John Tarrant  recently passed around the sign- up sheet soliciting volunteers to work one of two shifts.

The Kiwanis Club meets each Thursday at 12:10 p.m. at St. Ambrose Church, 830 W. Bonita Ave. in Claremont. For information, call (909) 621-5011 or visit www.claremontkiwanis.org.

Make connections, enjoy food, games, music at Memorial Park

In the tradition of any good hometown event, the Memorial Park festival features nearly 50 nonprofit groups providing food, information, games and a wide variety of items for sale.

Information booths are open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Food booths, which are manned only by nonprofit organizations, are open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Children’s activities run from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. and include a rock-climbing wall, an inflatable jumper, an obstacle course, a wildlife show and carnival games. About a dozen different nonprofit organizations, including the Independence Day Committee, provide free games and activities for children.

Bandshell entertainment includes Blues & Fries from 7:45 to 9:45 a.m.; Hank’s Cadillac from 10:30 a.m. to 12:45 p.m.; Ophelia’s Jump from 12:45 to 1:15 p.m.; and The Plustones from 1:15 to 3:30 p.m. A wildlife demonstration will take place from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. The kid’s entertainment stage and roving entertainment includes the Phiddle Harmonics Band, Aunt Bee the Clown, Minh Tran the Magician, Uncle Sam on Stilts, Petals the Clown and Dudes of 4Tune.

Fourth of July Booth Line-Up 2016

Get a good spot at the parade

The blankets and chairs will line Indian Hill Boulevard days in advance. This year’s parade will follow in the tradition of years past, with hundreds of kids on bikes, dogs in carts and folks on horseback as they all jockey for position in what has become one of the most popular events of the day.

The parade starts at 4 p.m. with our local police and fire departments, followed by the crowd-pleasing kids on bikes. The parade winds west on 10th Street to Indian Hill Boulevard, south on Indian Hill Boulevard to Harrison Avenue, and then west on Harrison Avenue to Mountain Avenue at Larkin Park, where it disbands.

Independence Day the Claremont way

It wouldn’t be complete without the annual fireworks show at Pomona College

Tickets, which are $8 presale or $10 at the door (if available), can be purchased at the Alexander Hughes Community Center, the Chamber of Commerce, the Claremont Club, Rio de Ojas, Vons and Wolfe’s Market. If it isn’t sold out, limited tickets may be available Monday, July 4 at Memorial Park.

Gates at the Pomona College Strehle Track open at 6:30 p.m, with a live concert featuring the Silverados and the yearly Kiwanis barbecue—those folks sure are busy! After a heart-warming rendition of the National Anthem by El Roble eighth-grader Leonie Casper, families, friends and lovers can cuddle up to watch the night sky lit up by such favorites as the Peony, Girandola and Skyrocket. And keep your fingers crossed for the appearance of a smiley face in the Claremont sky!