Lopez honors Celia Snapp on July 4

Independence Day highlights include a fun run, book sale, parade, salmon barbecue and fireworks show

Lopez Island will honor Family Resource Director Celia Snapp as its grand marshal in the annual July 4 parade.

The day begins with the annual 10K run, 5K run and 5K walk. It is sponsored by the Lions Club. Race-day registration begins at 7:15 a.m. at the Lopez Community Center with the runs/walk starting at 8:30 a.m. in the Village.

Entry fees for adults is $17 with T-shirt ($9 without) and $12 with T-shirt ($4 without) for those 16 and younger. Those who register before July 4 get a $2 discount.

Unique awards will be presented to the first male and female finishers in the runs, and the first three male and female finishers in each division of the runs and walk. The awards ceremony will take place at 10:15 a.m. at the Islanders Bank finish-line area.

Entry blanks are available at Isabel’s, Blossom Natural Foods, Island Graphics, and Lopez Village Market. Call 468-4522, or e-mail woodbury@rockisland.com.

The Friends of the Lopez Island Library’s annual used book sale will run from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Lopez Center. Between 2,500 and 3,000 books in every imaginable subject area will be for sale at this fundraiser put on by the Friends of the Library.

One of the highlights of every July 4 is Lopez’s colorful and sometimes irreverent parade, which begins at 11 a.m. Lopez time.

Snapp, director of the Family Resource Center, the Kids Summer Workshops and After School Programs, was selected as grand marshal by the Lions Club.

All three community service programs have flourished, in no small part because of Snapp’s leadership and hard work. When asked how much time she spends on the job, Snapp said with a smile, “40-plus hours.”

The Family Resource Center operates several programs, among them Readiness to Learn, which helps children grades K-12 and their families overcome obstacles to learning. Another program operated by the Family Resource Center provides early intervention support for children ages 2-5.

Snapp’s favorite is the Mentor Program, which now provides 24 Lopez youngsters a one-to-one relationship with a positive adult role model. “It’s my passion,” Snapp said. “Some of the mentor relationships have been going three years. It’s fabulous.”

The Kids Summer Workshops continues to grow. It now offers about 50 activities in a wide range of subject areas, and for adults as well as kids. Offerings this summer include women’s sailing, kayak trips for adults and teens, soccer and volleyball camps, hip-hop and break dancing, and a wide variety of arts and crafts programs.

Last week’s Summer Workshop highlight consisted of a presentation by the Missoula Children’s Theatre of “The Tales of Hans Christian Anderson.” Sixty Lopez youngsters performed in the play at Lopez Center. Overall, the summer workshops are expected to serve several hundred Lopez residents.

Immediately after the parade, Lopezians head for Lopez Center and the delicious salmon barbecue.

The day concludes with Lopez’s annual fireworks display over Fisherman Bay at dusk. Lopezians will tell you it’s the best fireworks show of all.

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