thedrifter
06-28-09, 09:47 AM
OCEANSIDE: Thousands cheer at parade honoring freedom
By LYDIA BREEN - For the North County Times
OCEANSIDE ---- Several thousand spectators lined the streets and cheered their favorite bands and floats during the annual Freedom Days Parade in Oceanside on Saturday.
Marching bands, veterans, servicemembers, community organizations, firefighters, clowns and more than 25 floats were part of the parade, which stretched along Coast Highway from Wisconsin Avenue to the Civic Center.
Vietnam veteran and retired Navy Capt. Bill Lohman was among the spectators, watching from a shaded spot near the 101 Cafe.� �
� "There's a Pearl Harbor vet," he said, pointing a parade participant. "Now that's getting rare. He's walking, at his age. That's wonderful."
Lohman and his wife, Donna, own property in Oceanside, and vacation here.
"We like Oceanside," Donna Lohman said.� "We like that it's a military-oriented town. It's quaint, kind of retro and innocent ---- like when we were younger.� These are hometown folks here, real community people."
She said the city's annual freedom parade is particularly important and poignant today.
"We are struggling now as a nation to define what freedom means," she said. "We tend to take it for granted. Freedom doesn't mean that we get to say whatever we want ---- to say things that could wind up hurting people. There's a lot of anger out there, and sometimes the media exploits that.� Now is a time for growth and understanding."
Pedro Salinas echoed those sentiments. Salinas was watching the parade with his three children, ages 2, 5 and 6. They waved to Ronald McDonald on a float, then to firefighters riding an old-fashioned fire truck from Camp Pendleton.
"Freedom allows us to express ourselves about things we don't like," Salinas said. "But we need to be more together ---- the races.� We need to be more polite to each other.� Sometimes we are in too much of a hurry. Today is nice. Everybody is getting together."
Spectator Steve Noble was sitting quietly on a stoop as a band marched past. Noble said that the parade gives him a chance to get away from errands and to relax a bit.
Noble served for 13 years in the U.S. Marine Corps. When asked what freedom means to him, he replied: "It means I can watch this parade in peace. Our troops are in Iraq and Afghanistan so we can do this today. Our troops help provide freedom for people� around the world. I love it in Oceanside. It's awesome to be here. "
Grand Marshall Alex Kapitansky waved to the crowd from a blue van carrying his nickname, "The Flagman." Kapitansky, a World War II veteran, earned the name for all the thousands of flags he has collected and handed out at ceremonies over the years.
Kapitansky, 87, has had to slow his flag-giving days because of a stroke, but he said that he is determined to help raise money to open a museum in Oceanside to honor veterans and to encourage young people to volunteer for their county.
Raiza Amirling, 18, and her teammates from the El Camino High School's Golden Pride Flag group spent five days practicing for the parade. Amirling, whose father served in the Navy, said that the team was happy to volunteer its time.
"We wanted to show our city that we appreciate the troops," she said. "We wanted to give something back to those who serve our country. This is our way of honoring them. "
� Lydia Breen is a freelance writer.
Ellie
By LYDIA BREEN - For the North County Times
OCEANSIDE ---- Several thousand spectators lined the streets and cheered their favorite bands and floats during the annual Freedom Days Parade in Oceanside on Saturday.
Marching bands, veterans, servicemembers, community organizations, firefighters, clowns and more than 25 floats were part of the parade, which stretched along Coast Highway from Wisconsin Avenue to the Civic Center.
Vietnam veteran and retired Navy Capt. Bill Lohman was among the spectators, watching from a shaded spot near the 101 Cafe.� �
� "There's a Pearl Harbor vet," he said, pointing a parade participant. "Now that's getting rare. He's walking, at his age. That's wonderful."
Lohman and his wife, Donna, own property in Oceanside, and vacation here.
"We like Oceanside," Donna Lohman said.� "We like that it's a military-oriented town. It's quaint, kind of retro and innocent ---- like when we were younger.� These are hometown folks here, real community people."
She said the city's annual freedom parade is particularly important and poignant today.
"We are struggling now as a nation to define what freedom means," she said. "We tend to take it for granted. Freedom doesn't mean that we get to say whatever we want ---- to say things that could wind up hurting people. There's a lot of anger out there, and sometimes the media exploits that.� Now is a time for growth and understanding."
Pedro Salinas echoed those sentiments. Salinas was watching the parade with his three children, ages 2, 5 and 6. They waved to Ronald McDonald on a float, then to firefighters riding an old-fashioned fire truck from Camp Pendleton.
"Freedom allows us to express ourselves about things we don't like," Salinas said. "But we need to be more together ---- the races.� We need to be more polite to each other.� Sometimes we are in too much of a hurry. Today is nice. Everybody is getting together."
Spectator Steve Noble was sitting quietly on a stoop as a band marched past. Noble said that the parade gives him a chance to get away from errands and to relax a bit.
Noble served for 13 years in the U.S. Marine Corps. When asked what freedom means to him, he replied: "It means I can watch this parade in peace. Our troops are in Iraq and Afghanistan so we can do this today. Our troops help provide freedom for people� around the world. I love it in Oceanside. It's awesome to be here. "
Grand Marshall Alex Kapitansky waved to the crowd from a blue van carrying his nickname, "The Flagman." Kapitansky, a World War II veteran, earned the name for all the thousands of flags he has collected and handed out at ceremonies over the years.
Kapitansky, 87, has had to slow his flag-giving days because of a stroke, but he said that he is determined to help raise money to open a museum in Oceanside to honor veterans and to encourage young people to volunteer for their county.
Raiza Amirling, 18, and her teammates from the El Camino High School's Golden Pride Flag group spent five days practicing for the parade. Amirling, whose father served in the Navy, said that the team was happy to volunteer its time.
"We wanted to show our city that we appreciate the troops," she said. "We wanted to give something back to those who serve our country. This is our way of honoring them. "
� Lydia Breen is a freelance writer.
Ellie