ASHLAND, Ohio — The Ashland Bicentennial Committee will be offering a limited number of grants to assist clubs or 501(c)3 organizations in the making of floats for the “Star Spangled Celebration” bicentennial parade in downtown Ashland on July 4.
The parade will begin at 10 a.m. and the Ashland Wendy’s/Wenco will serve as the parade sponsor.
Bicentennial Committee members are asking businesses and corporations to begin planning for their parade entries and grant applications for assistance in making the floats can be found on the Ashland 200th website at www.ashland200.com. Grant application forms are due April 22, 2015.
Those applying for grants will be asked to: 1) Describe your organization; 2) Tell how the grant would benefit the building of a float; and 3) describe what the float will look like, along with an estimated budget.
“We will be offering a limited number of grants to assist clubs and organizations in making floats for what we expect will be the largest and longest parade in the history of Ashland,” said Chris Box, director of operations of the Ashland Historical Society and a member of the Bicentennial Steering Committee.
Box said those filling out the forms can fax, email or mail those to: Ashland County Historical Society at 420 Center Street, Ashland; Fax 419-207-8153 or email cbox.achs@zoominternet.net.
In addition to floats, walking entries, which can include animals, are also encouraged to participate.
Judging of the units will take place during the parade, with a number of prizes awarded for the top entries in the following categories: patriotic, historic and unique. The judging will be based on creativity, theme related and overall appearance.
“There will be a commercial division and a non-commercial division, with winners selected in both,” Box said. “The first prize is $500, while second prize is $200 and third prize is $100.”
The deadline for entries in the parade is June 19, 2015. Space in the parade lineup cannot be guaranteed unless a registration form is completed and submitted prior to that deadline.
The registration form for all parade entries is located on the Bicentennial website at http://www.ashland200.com/ or the www.ashlandhistory.org site, or can be picked up at the Ashland Historical Museum office at 420 Center St. or the Chamber of Commerce office at 211 Claremont Ave. Registration forms should be returned to the Historical Society. They may be mailed, emailed to cbox.achs@zoominternet.net, or faxed to 419.207.8153.
