Huntington Woods ready to celebrate Fourth of July with week of activities

HUNTINGTON WOODS — The city of Huntington Woods is ready to kick off its yearly Fourth of July festivities.

Huntington Woods will begin its annual weeklong Fourth of July celebration on June 25 with over a dozen events and ending with its traditional fireworks show.

“We’re just a small little community who loves to celebrate the Fourth of July,” Recreation Director Tracy Shanley said. “It was many years ago that it was developed through the Parks and Rec department to do, like, weeklong events and celebrations leading up to the Fourth of July and ending with our parade, concert and fireworks. We always say that with the parade, half of the community is in the parade while the other half is watching the parade.”

The first events will take place on Tuesday, June 25, with a Great American Baby contest, with prizes for children 9-24 months dressed in patriotic attire, at 6 p.m.; a penny candy sale from the city’s teen council at 7 p.m.; and a family night with activities and bounce houses from 7 to 8:30 p.m. All events will be at Burton Field near Nadine and Henley avenues.

The next events will be Saturday, June 29, with a pancake breakfast 9-10:30 a.m. at the Gillham Recreation Center, 26363 Scotia Road, and a Float a Boat contest at 9:30 a.m. at the Aquatic Club, 26325 Scotia Road, for ages 6 and older, where contestants make boats out of cardboard, plastic containers and duct tape. Registration is required by June 27.

The city’s Run, Walk, Boom event will be the following day, Sunday, June 30, featuring a milelong run/walk at 8:15 a.m. and a 5K run/walk at 8:45 a.m.

A boxed lunch for people ages 60 and older will take place from noon to 1:45 p.m. Monday, July 1, at Hassig Senior Park near 11 Mile and Scotia roads. A tie-dye and foam blaster event will begin at 6 p.m. Tuesday, July 2, at Burton Field. An outdoor games day will take place at 5:30 p.m., followed by a pet pageant at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, July 3, at Burton Field.

The Fourth of July festivities will begin at 10 a.m. with Huntington Woods’ parade, which will start at Salem and York roads and end at Burton Field. Following the parade, a hot dog roast will be held at 11 a.m., as well as the presentation of civic awards and a speech from Mayor Bob Paul.

A concert will take place 7-9 p.m. with The Love Junkies at Burton Field. The day will end with the fireworks show at Rackham Golf Course, 10100 W. 10 Mile Road, starting at 10:05 p.m.

City Commissioner Jules Olsman said the Fourth of July is the biggest celebratory day of the year for the city.

“It just involves the entire community,” he said. “It is nostalgia. It’s simply the old-fashioned Fourth of July, the way people perceive it to be and the way they like to celebrate it. I mean, this is probably one of the few holidays where people in our city plan to be home for the Fourth of July versus going up north or going somewhere else for the long holiday weekend. It’s the one day of the year that I think that many, many people plan around being home and invite guests over to watch the parade and participate in.”

The baby and Float a Boat contests are for residents only. Those events, along with the pancake breakfast; Run, Walk, Boom; boxed lunch; and pet pageant require registration.

Registration can be done at recreation.hwmi.org, and people with questions can contact help at hwrec@hwmi.org or by calling (248) 541-3030. For more information on the events, check out the summer 2024 edition of Huntington Woods’ Hometown Herald under the city’s government tab on its website at hwmi.org.