Independence Day is a federal holiday, commemorating the July 2 signing of the Declaration of Independence of the United States from Great Britain’s rule. Two days later, on July 4, 1776, the document was approved, so it is on this date the country celebrates its independence.
Upon this momentous occasion, John Adams wrote to his wife, Abigail, “The second day of July 1776, will be the most memorable epoch in the history of America. I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated by succeeding generations as the great anniversary festival. It ought to be commemorated as the day of deliverance, by solemn acts of devotion to God Almighty. It ought to be solemnized with pomp and parade, with shows, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires, and illuminations, from one end of this continent to the other, from this time forward forevermore.”
And so, it has. Yet historically, during wartime and pandemics, the country has downshifted from spectacular to more subtle celebrations. After all, independence during quarantine seems like an oxymoron. Commensurate with COVID precautions, this year, there was no “pomp and parade.” Large-scale firework celebrations were canceled, beaches were closed, block parties were pared down or postponed. Traditional celebrations in Pacific Grove and Monterey were modified to include social distancing. And many local people just stayed home.
Recognizing the tradition and significance of gathering this weekend, Montage Health and Salinas Valley Memorial Healthcare System issued advisories to wear masks, wash hands, and wait our turn, keeping a social distance of 6 feet apart. Public service messages urged the community to “be home, be safe, be patient, be selfless.”
Just days before the Fourth, plenty of people had not yet decided how to observe the holiday – or if they should.
Jessicah and Roxby Hartley are known as a super social, community-oriented couple, who love to entertain and do so spontaneously during the week. Although used to a parade of people through their Carmel home, since the advent of COVID-19, they have become very careful and actually uncomfortable inviting people in. Particularly on the Fourth of July.
“We usually coordinate with neighbors and have a huge Fourth of July shindig of 100 people, maybe more,” said Jessicah Hartley. “We go all out with an explosion of red, white, and blue in the yard. We barbecue, everyone brings food to share, and we celebrate together, feeling a great sense of community and gratitude.”
This year, the Hartleys had a hard time coming up with ways to celebrate friends and family from a distance. Ultimately, they decided they would decorate – a little. They would barbecue and have apple pie. And they would celebrate with others doing the same, via Zoom video conferencing – apart, together.
“For us, the Fourth of July is about our friends and family,” Hartley said. “We see Independence Day as a celebration of unity and connection, not division. Our goal was to come up with a way to stay connected even as we had to celebrate independently.”
Change of plans
Carmel Mayor Dave Potter has always returned to his roots in Hingham, Massachusetts to celebrate the Fourth of July. He and his wife Janine would visit his mother, Ruth, and then witness an epic parade through town, before heading to the yacht club for lunch. Later, with wine in hand, they’d watch a huge fireworks display over Hingham Harbor. Even after Ruth died two years ago, they continued to return to Hingham for what Potter considers the most patriotic July Fourth celebration, ever.
But not this year. This year, Hingham was not happening.
“This year, we visited Janine’s stepdad, 99, her mother, 96, and her aunt, 97, at Del Mesa Carmel, for a social-distance hot dog roast, around noon. Then, Janine and I did a little New England lobster bake at home, with a classic ‘shore dinner’ of lobster, corn-on-the-cob, and boiled red potatoes. Due to social-distance issues, we stayed out of the public mainstream, doing the holiday in a much different manner than usual.”
While living in Chicago, Carolyn Staehle and her family attended huge Fourth of July festivals, food events, and fireworks shows. After moving to California, they would head to the Hamptons, where the Carmel Valley family spent their days sunning on the beach, and their evenings catching fireflies, watching fireworks, roasting marshmallows.
This year, they were going to Greece.
Once their trip was canceled, they decided to stay home and maybe accept an invitation to a gathering among a close group of friends. Or maybe just stay home.
“It was so hard to decide the right way to celebrate this holiday,” said Staehle. “There was no parade, no pancake breakfast, and with all the reports of COVID-19 cases going up, we wanted to be careful. But how would we keep four teens from socializing on the most social holiday of the year? If we stayed home, was I going to the effort of putting up red, white, and blue for no one to see? It felt like a canceled holiday.”
Community spirit
James Kellogg was determined not to cancel the Fourth of July celebration. Last year, the general manager of Carmel Valley Athletic Club hosted his traditional poolside celebration, with two bounce houses, face-painting, a watermelon-eating contest, and barbecue lunch. He even removed all the lane ropes in the pool for open-water, social swimming.
This year, it’s all about social distance. With the club so recently reopened, and lap swimming allowed by reservation only, Kellogg decided the best way to celebrate club members was to do nothing to shake their security that it’s safe to get back in the water.
“I’m an event kind of person,” he said, “and the Fourth of July is our biggest event of the year, which contributes to the social aspect of the club, giving people a sense of community, of belonging. Unfortunately, we couldn’t celebrate this year, but it was the right decision. Next year, when people can finally exhale, we’ll set a record for the best party we’ve ever had.”
Canceling large-scale Fourth of July celebrations was perhaps Monterey County’s best pledge to help residents regain independence as we continue to maintain social distance, so COVID can die of loneliness. Yet still, we came up with things to do, whether it was at home, streaming the Monterey County Pops! Independence Day Concert, hiking along wooded trails, just in time to watch another sunset – from a social distance.
“Of course people were anxious to be together on the Fourth of July,” said Potter, “but it was even more important to practice social distancing. Even on a holiday, we couldn’t take COVID casually. With numbers going in the wrong direction, we need to be more cautious than ever. That will lead us to our real Independence Day.”
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Author: Lisa Crawford Watson