July 4th – a day of celebration and remembrance

Posted on July 4, 2022 by Jim deMaine

Thanks to Pam P.

celebrations pulse   It’s America’s 246th birthday, a midpoint of summer and a chance for communities to celebrate together

Everyone knows the Fourth of July marks the day in 1776 when the Founding Fathers signed the Declaration of Independence. And while that is true, it took a few days for all the members of the Continental Congress to sign, and a few years for the colonies to be truly independent.

How John Adams set the mood on July 2, 1776

The traditional Independence Day celebrations can be traced to none other than John Adams, a Founding Father who would later become the nation’s second president. In a note to his beloved wife, Abigail, he wrote: I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated, by succeeding Generations, as the great anniversary Festival…It ought to be solemnized with Pomp and Parade, with Shews, Games, Sports, Guns, Bells, Bonfires and Illuminations from one End of this Continent to the other, from this Time forward forever more. More than two centuries later, we’re still celebrating!

A celebration of community

Adams was right, of course since July 4th is arguably the biggest day of the year for communities to gather. There are parades, there are bonfires. And there are festivals that might include a hot dog eating contest. Then, after 9 p.m., friends, neighbors, and family all gather to watch fireworks.

If you think about it, besides the stroke of midnight on New Year’s Day each year, July 4th is the only other time when most of our country is united in doing the same thing – collectively looking up to the sky at the majesty of fireworks.

Regardless of where and how you enjoy the holiday, you never get too old to celebrate.
celebrations pulse   July 4th is about honoring America’s freedom

While fireworks fill the sky from coast-to-coast, at the heart of the Fourth of July is recognizing the gift of democracy that our country has. Through the Revolutionary War, the Civil War, and World Wars I and II, America has stood tall, come together, and remained the United States of America. It’s what separates us from the rest of the world.

Perhaps no battle for freedom was more important and successful than the Allied landing on the beaches of Normandy on D-Day on June 6, 1944. Jim recently heard from a friend who shared a story about one of D-day’s most prominent, but little-known patriots. Brigadier General Theodore Roosevelt Jr. the son of President “Teddy” Roosevelt, was the oldest man to hit the beach on the D-day invasion. He was also the highest-ranking person to directly participate in the beach landing invasion.

Roosevelt knew the importance of the mission, he knew much of the invasion force were new, untried soldiers who had never seen combat. His requests to join his men were repeatedly denied, but he persisted, even when his superiors told him he faced near certain death.

The landing of the troops was successful, and General Roosevelt was there to see it all; however, six days later, Roosevelt died of a heart attack. He is buried in France. He has been called “the toughest man on the longest day.”   celebrations pulse   The midpoint of summer

July 4th comes on the heels of the longest day of the year, which is June 21, when the sun reaches its highest and most northerly point. After that day, daylight begins to become shorter.

The holiday of July 4th is sandwiched between the unofficial start of summer, Memorial Day, and the unofficial end of summer, Labor Day, so you can surmise that July 4th is the unofficial middle of summer.   celebrations pulse   So, at this mid-point, as we celebrate our shared history, let’s think about, for a moment, how we all come together as communities for this one singular day. The last few years, including this year, have been difficult for all of us, yet we persist in being the United State of America. Let’s celebrate our Union, and all that it has given us for the last 246 years.

Happy Fourth of July!
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