Smokiam Days draws crowd of thousands
Boy Scout Troop No. 44 member Michael Allen, raises his arm and smiles after the Smokiam Days parade in Soap Lake Saturday. He is holding the Parade Director's Choice Award.
SOAP LAKE — The annual Smokiam Days celebration in Soap Lake attracted between 5,000 and 7,500 people during the weekend.
The two-day long event featured a parade, vendor booths and soap box car display.
But the big draw is the fireworks show at night, said Chuck Fogerson, a director of the Soap Lake Chamber of Commerce.
SOAP LAKE - The annual Smokiam Days celebration in Soap Lake attracted between 5,000 and 7,500 people during the weekend.
The two-day long event featured a parade, vendor booths and soap box car display.
But the big draw is the fireworks show at night, said Chuck Fogerson, a director of the Soap Lake Chamber of Commerce.
People line the hillside overlooking Soap Lake and fill East Beach Park to watch the show, he explained.
Some people even come from as far away as Canada.
Weekend fireworks shows were also held in Coulee Dam, Wenatchee, Moses Lake and George.
This makes it difficult to know an exact number of people attending Soap Lake's event, he said.
The event was going "very smoothly," he said Saturday. "My favorite motto is that we're adaptable."
There were about 30 entries in Saturday's parade and 40 participants.
"We even got a motorcycle in the parade that definitely wasn't planned," Fogerson commented.
Awards were given to the following entries, Moses Lake Round-up, best royalty; Don Ren, best parade car; Columbia Basin Carriage Club, best auto club; Soap Lake Businessmen's Club, community spirit award for Fourth of July chariot; Royal City royalty float, mayor's choice/most traveled award; Boy Scout Troop No. 44, parade director's choice, American Legion Art Semro Post, best military unit, Ape over Soap Lake entry, most out of this world, and Dingo the dog, miracle pet award.
Dorothy Downing, of Soap Lake, was one of the parade's grand marshals. She was involved with the effort to bring the sun dial sculpture to the community.
A 1947 Willys Jeep was driven through the parade in honor of another grand marshal, Yancy Goodwin, a 2007 Almira/Coulee Hartline graduate.
He died in 2008 during a training accident while serving in the Army National Guard.
Another parade participant was Jennifer Peterson, of Soap Lake. She walked through the parade with her four children to publicize their homeschooling group, Lifelearners United.
"This is our first year doing it," Peterson said. "My kids begged, so I said OK. We watched the parade last year. I think it's going to be a good turnout."
Eileen Beckwith, of Soap Lake, was standing in front of a blue pick-up holding a costumed ape on a rocket, which was awarded "Most Out of This World."
The ape was her husband Burr Beckwith. Julius Lidbetter, 10, of Soap Lake, was along riding along.
After the parade, Mel Neal and wife Maxine Hansen were eating lunch at East Beach Park.
The couple came to Smokiam Days to see what they could find with their metal detectors and look at vendor booths.
They used to work as vendors at community events.
Neal found about 75 cents in change during the weekend.
In the past, he's found a man's gold wedding ring and a silver ring with black diamonds, but declined to say where he found the items.
"You never know what you're going to find," he said.
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