Waving Old Glory with pride, jubilant patriots took to the street to hail the nation’s 232nd birthday and its Declaration of Independence with a rollicking parade in Dyker Heights.
Marchers – among them banner groups, strolling entertainers, youth troupes and bagpipers – stepped off the jaunt at 13th Avenue and 66th Street, proceeding 20 blocks to 86th Street, where Parade Chair Camillio Casano led a ceremony in the parking lot of the John Hughes Council, Knights of Columbus, honoring members of the United States Armed Forces.
Leading the helm was Grand Marshal Bill Naddeo, past grand knight of the Cardinal Stritch Council of the Knights of Columbus, and honorees Brian Long, chair of the Committee on Scouting for the Diocese of Brooklyn, and local girls scout leader Frances Koren.
Among the crowd-pleasing spectacles was a serenade by the Giglio Brass Band, which performed military and patriotic tunes in addition to their signature tune, “O’Giglio’e Paradiso.”
The parade – now in its 103rd year and likely the nation’s oldest Independence Day parade in the nation – was sponsored by the Long Island Association of the Knights of Columbus.
