DARLINGTON INDEPENDENCE DAY COMMITTEE PLANS 20^th CELEBRATION

Began as Peace Committee Effort

by Ginny Dickie

You never know just what will happen to an idea – will it fizzle out or will it explode into something much bigger? In the case of the Darlington Peace Committee, a group that was active from approximately 1982 until 1986 or so, their idea to have a family picnic and fireworks to celebrate Independence Day in Darlington "exploded" into a full-blown celebration with a picnic, entertainment, parade, and fireworks.

The celebration this year – Sunday, June 29 – will be Darlington’s twentieth. Edna Reeves, Chairperson of the Darlington Independence Day Committee, says that this year will be special offering a more spectacular fireworks display, entertainment for children that includes a puppeteer, cloggers, and a country band. Special t-shirts will be sold to commemorate the event.

Edna Reeves has been involved in the workings of the committee for most of the past twenty years. She was active in the Darlington Peace Committee, which was the name of the original group to sponsor the celebration. The name of the committee for the celebration was changed, she says, because people didn’t quite understand what the Peace Committee was all about.

I recently met with several people who were on that original Peace Committee: Mara Walter, former Coordinator of the committee; Ginna Drahan Bennett; John Low; and Patricia Dearing-McDonald. I wanted to find out what the mission of the Peace Committee was and how they came to organize an Independence Day celebration.

Although everyone admitted that after twenty years, their memories are a little rusty, they all felt that the original mission of the group was to strive toward a nuclear free zone, to stand against nuclear weapons, and to promote peace. The core members were from the Darlington Friends Meeting, but Pat McDonald remembers that they met with ministers from several churches to encourage interest. Members of other churches and organizations, along with area residents, formed a committee of about 10 to 15 active participants, with others who participated from time to time. They planned activities on a month-to-month basis, including pot-luck dinners, candle light vigils, campaigns to encourage voter registration, and presentations of their views to organizations..

The Peace Committee felt that a picnic was a way to celebrate a sense of community and to bring people together. Mara Walter says that, "It was sort of a way to market our position, to make people understand that we were not just against things, but in favor of families, community, and celebrations of our independence."

The first celebration was a picnic in the relatively new Francis Silver Park on Shuresville Road. It was decided to hold it on the last Sunday in June in 1983. The third celebration in 1985 featured the landing of a huge hot air balloon with the word "Peace" in a big heart on the side. (Mara said "We tried to think of things that were eye-catchers, that would bring people.") There was also an air show put on by Aldino Airport. Pony rides were held at least one year, but were discontinued because of insurance problems.

The committee went round and round on the issue of fireworks. Pat McDonald said, "We felt we would be using projectiles to celebrate a war (of Independence). We were pacifists celebrating a war!" Nevertheless, the committee did sponsor fireworks displays. "People were so excited about fireworks in Darlington, they just couldn’t comprehend," Mara Walter added.

John Low remembers people bringing their own meal to the park. He also remembers going around during the picnic with a plastic bucket decorated with a green Darlington Peace Committee bumper sticker to collect money to pay for the fireworks. In addition to selling bumper stickers, Ginna Drahan Bennett also recalls selling T-shirts that advertised the Darlington Peace Committee. The money received was enough to pay for the fireworks, relatively cheap twenty years ago.

The entertainment was pretty cheap, too. Members of the local community who provided entertainment at no expense included Rob Dare, Janet Lloyd, and Gary and Bev Browning.

When it came to the parade, again the committee debated about having a military band, but decided to allow the Aberdeen Proving Ground Band. It was mostly a "come as you are" kind of parade – Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, 4H, bicycles, tractors, trucks, and horses. Edna Reeves remembers the parade lasting about five minutes, and the fireworks lasting about five minutes!

Approximately one hundred fifty people attended the first celebration. It was very local and was never publicized as a county event. Compare that to the nearly 5,000 that Edna Reeves estimates attended in 2002. She says more are expected this year. Now, say the original Peace Committee members, the Darlington schedule is up there with Havre de Grace and Bel Air.

As the fireworks, bands, and entertainment became more expensive, the Peace Committee felt it was "getting a little shaky" whether there would be enough money. Besides, the Peace Committee was active only about three years or so, after which members of the community not on the Peace Committee stepped up and helped with the planning so that the celebration would continue. That’s when the name of the committee changed although some of the Peace Committee members stayed on. Now as members drop off, others join. For a committee of about eight members, it’s a big undertaking.

When asked what she thought of the celebration today, Mara Walter said, "Oh, I think it’s wonderful. But it probably doesn’t have the same tone as it did then."

I wanted to know if they felt that the Peace Committee had achieved what they had hoped it would. Mara Walter commented, "At the time, it made other people who lived in Darlington think about war, about stock piling, about the danger of nuclear weapons. Did other people join us? No, but they supported us."

Some of the members are still active in the peace effort through the Friends Meeting, via the Internet, and by hosting peace walkers on their routes. Ginna Bennett has participated in several peace organizations since the breakup of the Darlington Peace Committee, and her two daughters have been involved in peace efforts.

As to the efforts of the Darlington Peace Committee in the Independence Day Celebration, it’s probably safe to say it is a wonderful success and hopefully will continue for many years!