Pet Parade Sparks Clintonville, Ohio's 58th Annual 4th of July Celebration

On the outskirts of Columbus lies a quaint little portal to the world known to all those in and around Ohio as Clintonville. Clintonville is an unicorporated neighborhood of 28,000 people.

The beauty of Clintonville lies in the fact that it is ripe with historic homes, home to Whetstone Park of the Roses and most importantly famous for the fourth of July Celebration.

Clintonville's Fourth of July celebrations is sponsored by Clintonville July 4th Celebration, Inc., who, according to the Clintonville Charity listing site, is a, "volunteer managed organization coordinates the annual community celebration of July 4th in the Whetstone Park." These volunteers spend the whole year to put on this amazing celebration. They fundraise right down to the 4th.

This years list of events according to This Week Community Newspaper, Clintonville edition, are as follows:

7:30 a.m.-10:30 a.m. - Breakfast in the enclosed shelter near park of the roses ($2 for children under 5 years of age and $6 for older children and adults)
8 a.m.-4 p.m. - Clintonville Resource CenterFood Drive
9 a.m. - Flagraising
9 a.m. - Pet Parade registration
10 a.m. - NCIL All-Star games
10 a.m. - Bike Decorating registration
11 a.m.-3 p.m. - Fishing Derby
1 p.m.-5 p.m. - Boy Scouts activities
2 p.m.-7 p.m. - Jump N' Jam Park
2 p.m.-7 p.m. - Bands
7:30 p.m.-10 p.m. - The JuJuBees
10 p.m.-10:30 p.m. - Fireworks
10:30 p.m.-11 p.m. - Post fireworks entertainment

This is a family friendly event that is almost entirely funded by the citizens and businesses of Clintonville. The community takes great pride in being able to pull this event off every year. It is a time for families to come together and enjoy the family friendly events such as the pet parade and watch your child shine in the bike decoration contest. Taking your children to celebrate 4th of July in Clintonville is something they will never forget for the rest of their lives. They will always look fondly on the silly way mom dressed up the puppy, and how much fun they had at the community breakfast.

This sense of community and pride is what makes Clintonville such a unique little gem. You don't want to miss out on being a part of this event.
Due note that this annual event can bring as many as 50,000 people to Whetstone Park, so get there early. My recommendation is to park on a side street and walk through the biketrail. Remember, have fun and don't forget to bring your dog dressed up as a firecracker for the pet parade!