By Robert Tomlinson
News Director
SCHOOLCRAFT — It has been a slightly rough decade to be Schoolcraft’s Fourth of July Committee in scheduling its annual celebration on Independence Day.
In 2020 and 2021, the COVID-19 pandemic shut down the festivities before returning in 2022 and 2023. In 2024, though, the major U.S. 131 road reconstruction and logistical concerns prompted it to be cancelled again.
This year, the celebration back in the southern Kalamazoo County village on Friday, July 4, and committee Vice President Kim Parker said she couldn’t be happier.
“We are ready. We had some delays, last year was because of the road construction, and COVID hit us and knocked us out for two years, but we are raring to go this year,” Parker said in an interview Tuesday. “As long as the weather cooperates, we’ll be there and doing what we do best.”
However, the celebration will come without the biggest draw: the traditional parade through the village. On Thursday morning, it was announced that due to a lack of law enforcement staffing, the parade would be cancelled. Parker said in a follow-up interview Thursday that the committee was disappointed by what she called the “out of the blue” decision made Wednesday night by the Schoolcraft Village Council following a report from the village’s police chief.
“Three of our committee members were there, and the police chief announced that they needed 25 officers to work the parade, and he only had 14. He said he exhausted all avenues; we disagree with that,” Parker said. “He said he had been looking for the last two weeks, and we’re thinking, two weeks, what is that? People make plans. So, the council had to vote; they had had questions beforehand prior to the meeting that we were unaware of, and they voted that it had to be cancelled. … We had no clue [Police Chief Scott Smith] was considering this.”
Parker said all the entries were filled for this year’s parade, and that they had tried to come up with solutions to keep the parade afloat, but to no avail.
“We came up with reasons we could still do it; like, we thought, couldn’t you ask firemen to do it, since they direct traffic at every accident, and [Smith] said no,” Parker said. “We have tried, but they already had their mind made up.”
Schoolcraft Police Chief Scott Smith and Village Manager Cheri Lutz did not return requests for comment Thursday morning prior to print press time. However, in a press release Thursday, the Village of Schoolcraft said that public safety “remains the Council’s top priority.”
“The Village relies on other municipalities and Kalamazoo County to help with staffing this event due to the magnitude of managing and rerouting the US 131 Highway traffic,” the statement read. “After extensive discussions with local law enforcement and emergency services, it became clear that staffing constraints would make it difficult to maintain the level of safety our residents expect and deserve during high-attendance events.”
Village Council President Michael Rochholz said in the release that it was a “difficult decision” to cancel the parade.
“We know how much our community looks forward to the annual parade—it’s one of our most cherished traditions,” Rochholz stated. “This was a difficult decision, but it was made out of care and caution for everyone’s well-being.”
Despite the cancellation, there will still be a number of festivities throughout the day, beginning at 8 a.m. when the Firecracker 5-Mile Run and 5K Walk kicks off at Schoolcraft High School. A Lions Club pancake breakfast will take place at Schoolcraft Elementary School from 7:30-10:30 a.m., and from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. there will be kids activities at the Schoolcraft Methodist Church on North Grand Street, the Schoolcraft Ladies Library Association’s bake sale and book sale at 163 N. Hayward St., and the annual car show at Burch Park.
The American Legion Post 475 will have a chicken and ribs barbecue with live music, kids games and a bounce house from 1-4 p.m. at 425 E. Clay St. Schoolcraft Elementary School will also hold events done by the Schoolcraft Fire Department, including an obstacle course and spraying water from a fire house from noon to 3 p.m. The local Historical Society will give tours of the newly-remodeled Dr. Nathan Thomas House Underground Railroad stop from 1-3 p.m. at 613 E. Cass St. and the Methodist Church will hold an old-fashioned ice cream social and live music at a time to be determined.
The annual fireworks display will take place on the evening of July 5 this year, and not July 4, with fireworks being shot off west of the high school football field. Parker said they weren’t able to do it on the day of Independence Day this year due to the availability of professional fireworks companies on the day.
“There were fewer companies doing fireworks this year; we lost two we had last year, and the only way we could do it was if we did it the following day, so we grabbed that before someone else did it somewhere else,” Parker said Tuesday. “There’s no guarantees we can do it [on July 4] next year, they said we have to take it year by year. But we’re thankful we can do it on the 5th this year.”
Overall, Parker said those that attend the festivities can expect one of the biggest celebrations of Independence Day in southwest Michigan, as well as a lot of joyous attendees celebrating the United States’ 274th birthday.
“It’s been a tradition in this little town, and it’s what we’re known for,” Parker said Tuesday. “Everybody’s really happy on the Fourth of July, everybody’s in a good mood, and ready to have fun.”
Robert Tomlinson can be reached at 279-7488 or robert@wilcoxnewspapers.com.
