Wednesday, July 4, 2012 at 10:00 a.m.
Celebrade Barrington's annual 4th of July Parade and join us as we "Let Freedom Ring" with vibrant bands, classic cars, fun floats, and extraordinary entertainment to delight the crowds.

This year's theme honors the great virtues of "Courage, Service, and Honor" and promises to be another grand celebration!

Parade route: Main Street, starting at the high school and ending at the train station.

Click on the file below to download the 2012 Parade Application.

parade_2012_registration_packet.pdf
File Size:	98 kb
File Type:	pdf

Download File

---

Scenes from the 2011 Parade: 2012 Grand Marshal: Burnell Wollar Burnell Wollar was born in 1925 in a hospital at the corner of Lincoln Avenue and Hough Street  in Barrington. His parents and grandparents before him had also been residents of the village. Growing up, his friends gave him the nickname “Burr,” and he attended Hough Street School and Barrington High School. In High School, Burr held the school (and district) record in the long jump – a  record which would stand for some 60 years. He graduated, along with his sweetheart, Irene, with the class of 1943.   After just one summer semester of college at the Illinois Institute of Technology, Burr tried to enlist in the U. S. Air Force in August of 1943. Because he was color blind, he  was not accepted into the Air Force, but was instead recruited at the age of 17 into the U.S. Army. Upon turning 18, Burr left Barrington for basic training in Fort Benning, GA. He continued his Army training in Louisiana and by year-end would finish amphibious training in San Louis Obispo, CA. In January of 1945 Irene travelled to California where she and Burnell were married. Just two days later, Burr was on his way to Europe, landing first on the beaches of France to join the Allies’ march to the Rhine River that would end in the defeat of Hitler’s Germany.  Even after this victory in Europe, Burr would see more combat action. Upon his return to the States, he received orders to deploy to the Philippines where the Japanese were brutally clinging to a number of island strongholds. Amazingly, this dual-theater assignment occurred among only two Divisions of the U.S. armed forces in WWII. Without even stopping to see his new bride, Burr shipped off to the Philippines where he saw action on two islands before the Japanese surrendered in 1945.  His third and last assignment of the War was a ‘mopping-up’mission; to announce the Japanese surrender to enemy soldiers who were unaware of their country’s defeat. His unit was joined by interpreters who marched with them across 180 miles of hilly, jungle terrain with orders to seal off any cave hideouts where enemy soldiers might still be hiding. Burr recalls that they used explosives to seal off more than a few strongholds and that the Japanese that surrendered were slowly starving to death by the time the Americans arrived. In the spring of 1946, Burnell returned home to Barrington and reunited with his wife, Irene. Burr went back to school and finished his degree at IIT, and worked for many years as an Engineer in private industry. He also served for 40 years as a volunteer on various Village Boards and Committees and is a charter member of Barrington’s VFW Post 7706. Burr and Irene built the home they currently live in on Cook Street in 1955. Burnell and Irene (“Bobbie”) Wollar have been married for 67 years, and are true community heroes and wonderful examples of Courage, Service and Honor. Hear Burnell tell his story in this recording, part of the Barrington Area Library local history archive (recorded 11/9/11).

Thank you 2012 Sponsors!

Find the parade on Facebook