After crash, Lakefair float makes it back to Tumwater's Fourth of July parade

For as long as Karen Griggs can remember, Lakefair has been a part of the annual Independence Day Parade in Tumwater. Griggs, president of Lakefair, was sure this year would be no different, despite the fact that the Olympia-based nonprofit's parade float was damaged in a crash in May.

"We were determined," she said. "We thought about driving (the float) up the street from the Tumwater office."

People from all over Thurston County lined the sidewalks of Capitol Boulevard to see Tumwater's 31st annual Independence Day Parade on Wednesday. It featured a variety of entries, including classic cars, marching bands, dancers — and Lakefair's float.

In May, a motorcyclist on U.S. Highway 101 south of Quilcene collided with a pickup hauling the Capital Lakefair trailer. The front of the float was crushed, Griggs said, and restoration took six weeks.

Capital Lakefair is primarily known for its annual summer festival on Capitol Lake, but it also participates in other events across the state, including Tumwater's parade for more than 20 years.

For many at Wednesday's parade, the event is a Fourth of July tradition.

Lawrence Cooper, 90, of Olympia has come to the parade for years. He used to attend with his wife, Carol, who died in 2012. The couple met in high school and marched together in a Portland Rose Festival parade.

“People come to parades for different reasons,” Cooper said. “Parades have always been important to me.”

This year, Cooper’s daughter came with him. Cooper has advanced glaucoma but said he still relishes the experience.

“I can’t see the parade, but I can hear it,” he said.

This story was originally published July 4, 2018 at 11:33 AM.