PHOTOS AND VIDEO: Pottstown packs the streets for July 4 parade and party

POTTSTOWN — Patriots packed High Street Thursday for the annual Fourth of July parade and Pottstown GoFourth! street festival.

As the mercury rose throughout the day, so too did the enthusiasm residents and visitors showed for the party Pottstown puts on every year.

From ax-throwing to jugglers, face painting to salsa music, marching bands to fountain dipping, crowds enjoyed what the borough has to offer every Independence Day.

This year, the Pottstown Rotary Club, which stages the parade each year, chose Ron Williams as the parade grand marshal. A longtime activist and former Pottstown School Board member, Williams is also a key organizer of the Pottstown Pow Wow, the native American celebration staged each spring in Riverfront Park and this year celebrated its 11th year.

“I was asked out of the clear blue sky,” Williams said Thursday as he sat waiting for the parade to get started. “To be honest, I was totally blown away and I was so honored to be chosen.”

As the car carrying Williams made its way down High Street, he shouted “There’s a party after the parade, and you’re all invited” to the crowd.

In addition to Williams, the parade official, there were all kinds of other officials in the parade.

In addition to Mayor Stephanie Henrick, Council President Dan Weand and Vice President Don Lebedynsky riding in the back of a pick-up truck, state Rep. Joe Ciresi, D-146th Dist., walked along a vehicle with his name emblazoned on the side and, this being an election year, so too did his Republican opponent in November’s election, Limerick Township Supervisor Michael McClosky.

As has become the tradition in recent years, the end of the parade just means the start of more fun. In this case, it’s the Pottstown GoFourth! street festival.

Food, music, carnival games, service organizations, even George Washington, this year’s festival had it all.

The Fireworks Party kicked off at 5 p.m. in Memorial Park and featured food trucks, a Sly Fox Beer Garden, inflatable “rides” for kids, and musical entertainment.

The pyrotechnics, presented by Sky Shooter Displays and sponsored again this year by Precision Polymer Products Inc., were scheduled to begin at 9:30 p.m.

Pottstown GoFourth! recognizes these valued top-level sponsors to date:

• Fireworks Sponsor — Precision Polymer Products Inc.

• Entertainment Sponsor — Switchpoint Foundation

• Rotary Club of Pottstown Parade — Creative Health Services Inc.

• Kids Zone Sponsors — Pottstown Area Health and Wellness Foundation and ROG Orthodontics

• Platinum Sponsor — The Hill School Student Philanthropy Council

• Drone Sponsor — Creative Health Services Inc.

• Gold Sponsors – Fox Rothschild, LLP; PECO, Fast Signs of Pottstown

Donations toward this community event are welcomed and donors will be recognized in the Pottstown Mercury. Please visit www.pottstowngofourth.com or by check made out to Tri-County Community Network (TCN), and send to Pottstown GoFourth!, P.O. Box 1362, Pottstown, PA 19464.

Sponsorship Amounts

• Precision Polymer Products — $15,000.

• Creative Health Services, Inc. — $8,000.

• Switch Point Foundation — $ 7,500

• ROG Orthodontics — $3,000.

• Pottstown Area Health and Wellness Foundation — $3,000.

• The Hill School Student Philanthropy Council — $3,000.

• Fox Rothschild, LLP — $2,500.

• PECO — $2,500.

• Wolf, Baldwin & Associates — $2,200.

• Colebrookedale Railroad — $1,695.

• O’Donnell, Weiss & Mattei, P.C. — $1,500.

• Tompkins Community Bank — $1,500.

• Hobarts Run — $ 1,500.

• Key Bank — $1,500.

• Jay Lanes — $1,000.

• Graham Management LP — $1,000.

• William P. Brogley Law Offices — $1,000.

• Stichter Masonic Lodge #254 — $1,000.

• American Heritage Credit Union — $1,000.

• The Lowa Group, Inc. — $500.

• J&K Foam Fabricating — $500.

• J.P. Mascaro & Sons/Pioneer Crossing Landfill Charitable Contribution Program — $500.

• Renewal By Anderson — $500.

• Passanante’s Home Food Service — $500.

• Victory Bank — $500.

• Mayerson Injury Law — $500.

• Pottstown Ambucs — $400.

• Heritage Coach Company, Inc. — $300.

• Pottstown Area Rapid Transit — $300.

• Vietnam Veterans Chapter 565 — $250.

• PA Industrial Equipment, Inc. — $250.

• Doe Club of the Pottstown Elks #814 — $250.

• Law Offices of David Garner — $250.

• Gehringer Mechanical — $250.

• Thomas L. Zeigler PE, Inc. — $200.

• 1200 High Street LLC — $200.

• Kreibel Security — $100.

• Schumacher & Benner Funeral Home and Crematory — $100.

• Keystone Ambucs — $100.

• Dolan Ray Law, LLC — $100.

• Warker Troutman Funeral Home — $100.

• Professional Pharmacy — $100.

• Weigner Insurance & Financial Services, Inc. — $100.

• Virtual Farm Creative, Inc. — $100.

• RE/Max Achievers – John Ohler & Nicole Roman — $100.

• Yucha Chiropractic — $100.

• Alford Party Rentals — in-kind donation

• Fast Signs of Pottstown — in-kind donation

• Michelle Morgan — $100.

• David and Grace Kraybill — $250.

• Sheri Waldman — $100.

• W. Scott Roberts — $100.

• Doug Slick — $20.

• Montgomery County Community College — $1,500

• Montgomery County Community College Sound Recording Technology — $1,250

• Married 2 Electric — $1,000

• Pottstown Hospital – Tower Health — $500

• Kenneth Wilhelm — $500

• Yergey Dalor Allebach Scheffey Picardi — $300

• Gofus Memorials — $150

• Dr. & Mrs. Lawrence J Gribb — $100

• The Sweeney Family — $20

• Nicole Matz — $25