THE PARADE OF CHILDREN is always a popular part of the July Fourth celebration at Mount Hood.

By MYRON F. DITTMER JR.

President

Mt. Hood Park Association

MELROSE — In one of the most beautiful venues in Melrose, a dedicated audience turned out to attend the Association’s July 4th Concert at Mount Hood Memorial Park & Golf Course featuring music with a patriotic theme.

With help from Mother Nature, the rain ended just before the concert was scheduled to begin.

The festivities began with introductory remarks from Myron Dittmer, president of the Mt. Hood Park Association, followed by Ward 6 City Councilor Jen Grigoraites, and then Mayor Paul Brodeur.

The concert was dedicated to longtime resident Helen Gorgio who passed away on June1, 2023. Helen loved Melrose and was well known and liked in local politics through her hard work helping our Veterans and through other organizations she volunteered at. She was a founding member of the Mt. Hood Park Association and served as President of the Melrose Veterans Club for over 30 years and was a Gold Star Wife.

The concert was supported in part by a grant from the Melrose Cultural Council. The Middlesex Concert Band of Wakefield, under the direction of Mark E. Olsen, provided spirited arrangements of many patriotic and show tunes to the enthusiastic approval of the audience. All children in attendance were given free bags of popcorn and lemonade compliments of Sagamore Golf, Inc., who manage and run the golf course.

Although many patriotic and show tunes were played during the evening, the final and most exciting song of the evening included the band’s rendition of” Stars and Stripes” which included our popular “Parade of Children” who waved their American flags while parading around the venue.

The Association would like to extend our special appreciation to the following companies and organizations that helped make this event such an impressive success this year. They include, Melrose Park Commission, Melrose Park Department, Sagamore Golf, Inc., Hillside Printing, LLC, Inc. (who provided the programs), Bob Boisselle for videotaping it for MMTV, and of course, the Middlesex Concert Band for their extraordinary music presentation.

For more information on the Mt. Hood Park Association, visit our web site at  HYPERLINK “http://www.mthoodpa.com” www.mthoodpa.com, contact Myron F. Dittmer, Jr. at (781) 665-8172 or email him at mdittmer@mthoodpa.com.