Residents of Arlington and the surrounding communities have been treated to weeks of family-oriented fun thanks to the hard work and dedication of the organizers, volunteers, sponsors and participants of the annual Forth of July celebration and Northwest Experimental Aircraft Associations Fly-In at the Arlington Airport.
While the Olympic Avenue street project caused the cancellation of some traditional Fourth of July activities like the carnival, the street fair and the kiddies parade, other annual favorites like the grand parade, Rotary Duck Dash, fireworks show, ice cream eating contest, Kiwanis auction and the Pedal, Paddle and Puff triathlon went on without a hitch to the pleasure of all those who attended.
Months of planning and hard work go into ensuring the success of the all events that would not be possible without the many organizers, sponsors and volunteers. For example, Cascade Valley Hospital and Clinics coordinated the grand parade, the Rotary Club of Arlington made another splash with its annual Duck Dash, the Arlington-Smokey Point Chamber of Commerce presented the fireworks show, the Arlington Kiwanis raised $8,500 at it annual auction, the Local Scoop caused a number of cases of brain-freeze at its annual ice cream eating contest, Arlington Heights Fire District No. 21 served more than 1,000 breakfasts at its annual pancake feed and athletes of all abilities competed in the Pedal, Paddle and Puff coordinated by the city of Arlingtons Bill Blake. The sponsors, and there are too many to name, also stepped up this year to ensure the many events went on as planned.
The same is true for the annual EAA Fly-In held at the Arlington Airport. This years aviation fete, held July 11-15, featured more than 140 exhibitors; historic aircraft from the collections at the Heritage Flight Museum in Bellingham, the Paul Allen flying Heritage Collection, the Cascade Warbird Squadron and others; air shows; veteran authors and a tribute to Americas veterans.
Tens of thousands of people from the local area, around the state and from across the country attend the event which, like the Fourth of July Celebration, depends on the hard work of organizers and volunteers and the generosity of sponsors.
These events not only benefit our community economically, they are an important aspect of the quality of life we all enjoy living in north Snohomish County. Kudos to all those who played a part, large or small, in ensuring these family-oriented events are a success year after year.

STF

To contact a member of The Marysville Globe/Arlington Times editorial board Kris Passey or Scott Frank e-mail forum@premier1.net.