Penngrove puts small-town America on display

<p>Penngrove's July 4th parade, touted as the biggest little parade in Northern California, lived up to its billing Sunday, drawing 2,000 people to the hamlet's Main Street to see fire engines, horseback riders, tractors and a wood-chipping truck.</p><p>“A lot of variety, a little bit of everything,” said Kyle Spangler of Petaluma. “I like it, it brings the local community together.”</p><p>The parade lasted 40 minutes, from the singing of the National Anthem to the last of the 60 entries.</p><p>“I love it. It's short, it's small-town,” said Keri Harmon of Petaluma.</p><p>The parade and festival began in 1976 and is organized by the Penngrove Social Firemen, a non-profit social club that owns the community park and community center.</p><p>“The theme is America; it's the same every year,” said Ray Soper, treasurer of the social group. “We dedicate the parade to American servicemen.”</p><p>Five fire trucks led off, followed by a tractor, a mail truck, rare and vintage cars, World War II military vehicles, horses, marchers and a trailer with members of the Shriner's Aahmes Temple.</p><p>“This is America,” said John Calmeyer, a member of the band The Rolling Blackouts, which sang the national anthem. “You have that family feeling.”</p><p>Paul McNamara of Petaluma was in a 1920s horse-drawn doctor's buggy, his fifth year in the parade.</p><p>“It's great, it is getting bigger every year, but its fantastic,” he said.</p><p>Tim Sutter of San Francisco was driving a restored World War II half-track military vehicle, one of eight entered by the North Bay Military Vehicle Club of Cotati.</p><p>“It's a fun thing, It's local, it's an event,” Sutter said.</p><p>The parade and festival is Penngrove's largest community event.</p><p>Crowds were lined two, three and four deep along Main Street, vastly increasing the population of Penngrove, which has about 1,200 people. The festival and barbecue drew 2,300, said Joe Reiter, Penngrove Social Firemen's president.</p><p>It is the social club's main fundraiser to support the community facilities. The club also is in the midst of raising $50,000 to replace the playground equipment, which was built in 1952.</p>