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When the Annual Northville 4th of
July Parade starts this year and the
Cheers for Team USA begin, it will be
culmination of planning that began a
year ago, just as the parade ended last
year.
Volunteers from the Northville
Community Foundation, which organiz-
es and coordinates the parade annually,
took careful notes last year and analyzed
the parade judges' comments to see
what they might improve this year. That
has become their practice since the
foundation took on the parade in 1999
and the volunteers work all year to
ensure that they bring back the crowd
favorites and add new elements to the
annual event that often draws as many
as 20,000 people lined up along down-
town streets.
The Foundation, a 501c(3) tax exempt
public charity, is dedicated to improving
life in the Northville community. While
the parade may be the most obvious of
the efforts of the organization, they do
much more every year, explained
ExecutiveDirector JessicaStriegle.
“It's part of our mission statement to
improve the quality of life in our area
andwe do that with scholarships, grants,
holiday gift baskets for seniors, the
Holiday Home Tour, and of course, the
parade,” she said. “Our biggest effort,
however, is the operation of Maybury
Farm, a fully working farm open for vis-
its where we have special events to edu-
cate the public about many arts and
skills that are part of Americanhistory.”
Striegle said that funds earned from
events like the Holiday Home Tour help
feed and provide for the needs of the
animals at the farm, which are always a
big attraction for young children. The
animals are all very people friendly and
used to lots of petting and hands-on vis-
its, she explained.
The annual corn maze at the farm is
also a fundraising event which helps
fund the health and care of the animals,
she said, and the small entrance fee to
the farm helps with maintenance of the
buildings andbarns.
The foundation also annually awards
scholarship to students who are making
a difference in the community through
volunteerism and donates backpacks
loaded with school supplies to students
in need through the Backpacks for Kids
program.
See
Volunteers,
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It's part of our mission
statement to improve the
quality of life in our area and
we do that with scholarships,
grants, holiday gift baskets
for seniors, the Holiday
Home Tour, and
of course, the parade.
”
Welcome to the parade
Volunteers work all year to ensure success of ‘Cheers For Team USA’
