Apollo's new Independence Day celebration welcomed by residents missing community events

A day late was not a dollar short when it came to Apollo’s Independence Day celebration Saturday.

While some were wondering why they’d have to wait until Sunday night for fireworks, many were thrilled that the effort was made to bring a community celebration back to the borough. Held the day after the Fourth of July, the celebration included a parade, food trucks, vendors and children’s games.

“It’s been a while since we’ve had a parade,” said Apollo native Terri Zinchini, who now lives in nearby Oklahoma Borough and was looking forward to watching her granddaughter, Lily Hall, 9, march by with her softball team. “It’s nice to see a parade coming back.”

Zinchini and her mother, Roberta Brown of Washington Township, placed their chairs in the shadow of a building along North Warren Avenue for the parade. They and others were not sure exactly how long it’s been since Apollo had its annual mid-July celebration of the Apollo 11 moon landing, only that it’s been many years.

Once one of the largest summer festivals in the Alle-Kiski Valley, the moon landing celebration grew into a weeklong event before fading away in phases. A scaled-back, one-day celebration for the 50th anniversary of the moon landing was held in 2019.

“We miss all that stuff,” Brown said. “I’m just glad to see something happening.”

That’s what borough Councilwoman Jeanne Rummel and Teri Mulhal, who comprise the Apollo Events Committee, hope to accomplish. This is the first year for the Independence Day event, following a Halloween parade last year, a light up night for Christmastime, Easter egg hunt and movies in the park.

Rummel called the Independence Day celebration “a great big community family reunion” that they hope to have every year.

“We want to bring something back for the kids. We had this growing up,” Rummel said. “We want to give back to the community in any way possible so these traditions carry on.”

Putting the celebration together was exhausting work, Rummel said, but she and Mulhal had help.

“We have a really strong community and they were ready to jump in,” she said.

Their efforts were appreciated by many in the crowd that gathered along North Warren Avenue for the parade.

“I think it’s amazing,” said Tarah Richardson of Apollo, who watched the parade with her husband, Donald, and their daughters Ryan, 3, and Blayke, 6. “They’ve done a great job the last couple of years building the community. The kids love it.”

Rachel Cummings of Apollo remembers the moon landing celebrations and how big those used to be.

“When I grew up, we used to have some stuff like this and it became nothing,” said Cummings, who was there with her husband, Bobby, and their two sons, 6 and 12. “It’s pretty nice seeing the community come together and having something like this and you don’t have to go too far.”

The fireworks are Sunday night as a nice way to end the weekend, Rummel said.

The display, to be set off across the Kiski River on Sheridan Road, is scheduled to start at 10 p.m. Spectators may gather on Scenic Drive, along the river in Apollo, to watch the display.