GILROY
– If a backyard barbecue is not enough to inspire an
Independence Day celebration, a neighborhood get-together and city
fireworks show may do the trick.
GILROY – If a backyard barbecue is not enough to inspire an Independence Day celebration, a neighborhood get-together and city fireworks show may do the trick.
The East Eighth Street Association will host a celebration Sunday in an effort to strengthen ties among residents. The evening will begin at 6:30 p.m. with food, music and games followed by fireworks at 8:45 p.m. The public is invited to join in at East Eighth Street and Butcher Park.
The Little Rascals, a group of neighborhood kids, applied for an $840 grant to fund the event. Norma Cardoza, treasurer for the East Eighth Street Association, said the kids organized to make a change in the street. The neighborhood has a history of gang violence and the Little Rascals want to bring the community together without fighting she said. Cardoza’s 14-year-old son, Andrew, volunteers for the organization because he wants to facilitate friendships with the neighborhood children, she said.
Not only did the Little Rascals applied for the money, but they also planned the entire event themselves.
Several other neighborhood associations are planning small block parties for their residents.
To conclude the day’s festivities, the annual fireworks show, sponsored by the City of Gilroy, will take place at Gilroy High School starting at 9:15 p.m. and should last about 20 minutes.
Traditionally people take in the sights from nearby homes, line up along the levy, or relax on lawn-chairs and blankets on the high school baseball fields.
EVENTS
Gilroy
East Eighth Street celebration
6:30 p.m. Sunday
Butcher Park
Fireworks Show
9:15 p.m. Sunday
Gilroy High School
Morgan Hill
Patriotic Singing
6 to 7 p.m. Saturday
Britton School
Street Dance
7 to 11 p.m. Saturday
downtown
Parade
11:30 a.m. Sunday
downtown
Family Festival
12:30 p.m. Sunday
Community Park
Fireworks
at dusk on Sunday
Community Park
(Parking $10 donation)
Hollister
Hollister Independence Rally
Friday to Sunday, vendors open
at 8 a.m. daily, downtown
