Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

July 4th Parade in Mitt Romney's Barber Tract May Be Cancelled

For decades, the annual Independence Day parade has been a cherished tradition of La Jolla's Barber Tract, the tony oceanfront neighborhood where GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney maintains a beach house getaway.

Residents decorate their historic houses in patriotic bunting, get decked out in red, white, and blue, and dress up as Lady Liberty and Uncle Sam.

Some sport flag-motif speedos and body paint, drive golf carts festooned with Old Glory, and parade their dogs in balloon-bedecked strollers. The day is capped by a banquet of watermelon.

In short, the Barber Tract on the Fourth seems the ideal venue for any baby-kissing, red-blooded American politician.

But this year, on the eve of Romney's possible presidential nomination, the parade is in danger of being called off.

According to sources, the bad news began circulating around the Barber Tract in a notice this week:

"For longer than 23 years...we have gotten together at the epicenter of our neighborhood and with music, laughter and joy to celebrate the independence of our great nation.

"This year we do not have a volunteer to host this wonderful event, and thus it may not happen.

"Does this reflect the mood of the country? Is patriotism dead? Is nationalism extinct?

"...If no one steps up to host the parade: then there will be no parade this year.

"Possibly the USA is as doomed as Greece!"

Reached by phone this morning, Judy Cole, president of the Barber Tract Neighborhood Association, confirmed the worst.

"People just don't seem to want to volunteer these days," said Cole, who is seeking someone to step foward and run the event, along with a few other workers to take orders.

"Just one chairperson and a couple of helpers to get the watermelon, cookies, and balloons, and coordinate all the events."

The possiblity of cancelling the parade, she said, "is just breaking our hearts."

According to Cole, the Barber Tract includes 250 houses and the association has about 100 members, each paying $35 in annual dues.

Romney belongs to the group, she said, and though he hasn't been sighted recently, manages to keep in touch.

"He sends his check in and writes notes about certain things he's concerned about...security issues," Cole said.

"We get a lot of graffiti," she added. "We don't have [private] security in our neighborhood anymore...and there are a lot of drug issues going on at the beach."

Romney's position on cancelling the Fourth of July parade isn't known.

"I thought about writing him a letter, saying 'Hey, Mitt, how about you volunteering?', but he's pretty busy right now."

Pictured: Romney house in La Jolla

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all

Previous article

Reader 1st place writing contest winner gets kudos

2nd place winner not so much
Next Article

San Diego Reader 2024 Music & Arts Issue

Favorite fakers: Baby Bushka, Fleetwood Max, Electric Waste Band, Oceans, Geezer – plus upcoming tribute schedule

For decades, the annual Independence Day parade has been a cherished tradition of La Jolla's Barber Tract, the tony oceanfront neighborhood where GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney maintains a beach house getaway.

Residents decorate their historic houses in patriotic bunting, get decked out in red, white, and blue, and dress up as Lady Liberty and Uncle Sam.

Some sport flag-motif speedos and body paint, drive golf carts festooned with Old Glory, and parade their dogs in balloon-bedecked strollers. The day is capped by a banquet of watermelon.

In short, the Barber Tract on the Fourth seems the ideal venue for any baby-kissing, red-blooded American politician.

But this year, on the eve of Romney's possible presidential nomination, the parade is in danger of being called off.

According to sources, the bad news began circulating around the Barber Tract in a notice this week:

"For longer than 23 years...we have gotten together at the epicenter of our neighborhood and with music, laughter and joy to celebrate the independence of our great nation.

"This year we do not have a volunteer to host this wonderful event, and thus it may not happen.

"Does this reflect the mood of the country? Is patriotism dead? Is nationalism extinct?

"...If no one steps up to host the parade: then there will be no parade this year.

"Possibly the USA is as doomed as Greece!"

Reached by phone this morning, Judy Cole, president of the Barber Tract Neighborhood Association, confirmed the worst.

"People just don't seem to want to volunteer these days," said Cole, who is seeking someone to step foward and run the event, along with a few other workers to take orders.

"Just one chairperson and a couple of helpers to get the watermelon, cookies, and balloons, and coordinate all the events."

The possiblity of cancelling the parade, she said, "is just breaking our hearts."

According to Cole, the Barber Tract includes 250 houses and the association has about 100 members, each paying $35 in annual dues.

Romney belongs to the group, she said, and though he hasn't been sighted recently, manages to keep in touch.

"He sends his check in and writes notes about certain things he's concerned about...security issues," Cole said.

"We get a lot of graffiti," she added. "We don't have [private] security in our neighborhood anymore...and there are a lot of drug issues going on at the beach."

Romney's position on cancelling the Fourth of July parade isn't known.

"I thought about writing him a letter, saying 'Hey, Mitt, how about you volunteering?', but he's pretty busy right now."

Pictured: Romney house in La Jolla

Sponsored
Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.