Homemade parade -

ERIN TIERNEY/THE CHRONICLECreswell’s Dusty Harrold, owner of Patriot Tree Service LLC, drives his truck in the community-organized July 4 parade in Creswell, as his wife, Bethany Harrold, stands in the bucket and throws candy to kids. Also pictured is Harrold’s friend Logan Perini, of Cottage Grove. Austin Horter, Tanner Herbert, Mike Sand and Brandon Miller, all of Cottage Grove, were also on the truck, waving flags as they rolled through town. ERIN TIERNEY/THE CHRONICLE

CRESWELL — This year’s Fourth of July was like no other: a celebration of patriotism in a pandemic. Coronavirus restrictions halted traditional events but did not hinder the city’s spirit. Residents took it into their own hands to celebrate a Fourth that was reminiscent of the city’s past.

Traditionally, thousands of people are drawn to Creswell to celebrate the Fourth, inviting locals and out-of-towners to enjoy the car shows, local vendors, a big parade and an impressive fireworks display, all organized by the Creswell Chamber of Commerce.

In a pandemic, something of that caliber could not be emulated, right?

The community may not have been able to celebrate like they always have, but they showed up for the party anyway.

PHOTO BY ERIN TIERNEY/THE CHRONICLE

The ceremony at Hobby Field Airport, led by city leaders and local scouts, ushered in the day in proper patriotic form as people perused the planes and chatted with pilots.

“The flag ceremony at the airport was really a fun event and perhaps is something we should continue doing moving forward,” Creswell city manager Michelle Amberg said. “I really enjoyed seeing the planes from our own airport and the local pilots flying.”

The rumbles could be felt from above, but due to overcast skies, you had to use your imagination to see the military jets fly over.

And as part of the City’s initiative, houses, pets and sidewalks were decorated in hopes of winning prizes to local businesses or restaurants. Shannon Norman at 693 Creswood Drive, featured on last week’s cover of The Chronicle, won the grand prize for the Most July Fourth Spirit, and received one year of service from Sanipac.

For their neighbors, residents organized car shows, a community market, and a homemade parade with about 30 vehicles and horses.

Residents set off fireworks throughout Creswell on Saturday, July 4, that lit up neighborhood streets and the night sky.

And all into the night, the aroma of spent gunpowder drifted through town in a smoky haze; the sky lit up with show-worthy illegal firework displays, in glittery bursts that were visible from nearly any vantage point around town.

There were so many illegal fireworks set off that the police simply could not keep up.

“We spent a lot of time chasing fireworks Saturday, but it was pretty futile with the sheer number and everyone starting all at once,” Lane County Sheriff’s Sgt. Scott Denham said. “Luckily, there were no injuries or fires started, that we know of.”

No citations were given out for fireworks or the parade and police “had only two reported illegal fireworks calls for the weekend; a third was an observed issue witnessed by me and dealt with,” Denham said.

With no roads blocked off, the makeshift parade came through town in surges that trailed through neighborhoods, partially down Oregon Avenue and up to Creswell Health & Rehabilitation Center, with some watching the parade unfold just outside their windows.

Creswell’s official Fourth of July festivities began with the local Boy Scouts troop presenting the flag, with the crowd reciting the Pledge of Allegiance. PHOTOS BY ERIN TIERNEY

A longtime viewer and first-time participant in the parade, Dusty Harrold said he’s been going to the Creswell parade since he was a kid, so when the opportunity arose to help fill the void of the canceled Chamber-organized parade, he jumped on the chance.

A longtime Creswell resident, Harrold started his own business, Patriot Tree Service LLC in February. He said it wasn’t hard to get others involved once he got the word out about this community-organized parade, led by Creswell resident Julie Bivens. Bivens did not respond to Chronicle inquiries by press time.

“Creswell takes Independence Day pretty seriously,” Harrold said. “We are a patriotic community. It was really cool to see the community come together when the (chamber) couldn’t and make it happen.”

The parade ultimately caused little issues for deputies as “the parade participants did everything we asked them to do,” Denham said. “They turned the horses at First Street and didn’t take the horses all the way down Oregon Avenue. People were being gracious by pulling off the side of the road to let traffic go by.”

There were no major traffic control issues and no received traffic complaints for the parade, Denham said.

The only issue, Denham said, was that candy was being thrown out into two-way traffic lanes. “Normally there is traffic control during the parade, but when there is traffic going both ways and kids running out into two-way streets … that can’t happen,” so deputies let participants know and stopped the activity.

There wasn’t much of a crowd, Denham said, noting a cluster of about 50 people downtown outside of City Hall, but he said most dipped in just to watch the parade, were scattered out and didn’t set up lawn chairs or linger.

“Those who participated in the parade with all their cars gussied up going through town, they followed all the rules and have been so generous with their kindness,” Creswell city manager Michelle Amberg said. “It’s been really neat to see.”

And all-in-all, Denham said he couldn’t have asked for the homemade parade to have gone better.

The parade “didn’t hurt anyone in the community,” Denham said. “This was a totally harmless deal and it is better than people throwing a protest, crashing windows and getting in people’s faces.”

Amberg hopes this this year’s volunteerism may inspire more volunteerism within the Chamber for next year’s event.

“I hope that more people will become involved in the event next year by volunteering with the Chamber,” she said. “It can be an exhausting day for the handful of people who work so hard every year. I think people would be surprised how few community volunteers there are. More hands make light work – if the pancake breakfast, parade, park events, food trucks and fireworks are important to you, think about becoming involved.”

Lilly Lawson, 4, of Creswell, who checks out Gary Ludeke’s “Little Star” plane.

Amberg said that this year’s celebrations highlighted that, “Creswell is a great place to live. We didn’t have the big, showy events that the Chamber does so well, but we did have a very hometown feel. I think our community sent the message that Creswell is the best little town in Oregon.”

Around 100 people gathered at Hobby Field to check out vintage and custom aircraft.