Southampton struts its patriotic stuff
Samantha Taylor, 14, left, and Annabel Gatewood, both of Southampton, watch the Fourth of July parade along North Main Street in Southampton. (July 4, 2011) Credit: James Carbone
Antique firetrucks and Elvis.
Those are just two reason why Jacques Nordeman, an executive from New York City who owns a home in Southampton, has made the Southampton Independence Day Parade an annual tradition the past two decades.
"Where else can you see this every year?" Nordeman said Monday as he used his iPhone to record Bill Frankenbach, the chairman of Southampton's Commission on Veterans Patriotic Events, engage in a soulful duet of "America the Beautiful" with an Elvis Presley impersonator.
Southampton's annual celebration for America's birthday has a long history -- the parade is a century-old tradition and the biggest on Long Island, said Mayor Mark Epley.
Though a celebration of America, the parade is also a tribute to public service -- evident by the number of fire departments and police officers that march by to shouts of "Thank You!" and consistent applause from onlookers.
Southampton Fire Chief Rod Pierson, 39, said he usually recognizes people watching the parade as he walks and it adds to the tight-knit community feeling.
"I've been with the fire department for 20 years and marched every year. I wouldn't miss it for the world," he said.
Two members of the famed Tuskegee Airmen, Roscoe Brown Jr. and Lee Hayes, served as grand marshals of the parade. Brown and Hayes were among the 996 black men who broke the military's color bar when they were commissioned as pilots during and immediately after World War II.
The parade was a first for both Brown, who is from Riverdale in the Bronx, and Lee, who lives in East Hampton.
"I think it was an excellent parade that brings together young and older people . . . and gives them a chance to understand what the country is about," Brown said after the event.
Monday's parade had more than 50 groups participating, including high school marching bands, local hospitals and veteran groups.
For Frankenbach, 82, chairing and doing announcements for the parade is a family affair. Frankenbach has presided over the parade for the last 48 years, and his father did it for 35 years before that.
"My favorite thing about the parade is watching the American flag come down Jobs Lane," he said. "It gets to you."
After 47 years, affordable housing ... Let's Go: Williamsburg winter village ... Get the latest news and more great videos at NewsdayTV
After 47 years, affordable housing ... Let's Go: Williamsburg winter village ... Get the latest news and more great videos at NewsdayTV
