Mayor's 4th of July Parade: Celebrating Independence Day in Alameda

This year, the Alameda Mayors 4th of July Parade will feature bands from several Alameda schools, have a longtime resident and business owner as its Grand Marshall, and host Golden State Warriors' Harrison Barnes as its guest of honor.

Christopher Seiwald will be this year's Grand Marshall. He is a 25-year resident of Alameda and the Founder and President of Perforce Software, an Alameda Company started in 1995 and now employing 250 people worldwide. 

Seiwald is also the owner of the popular, “Little House Café” in downtown Alameda. In addition, Seiwald is active in the Alameda Community having served as President of the Alameda Soccer Club and as Chair of Alameda America’s Cup Committee.

He also heads the Perforce Software Foundation, which has sponsored the Little Ice Rink and many other charities. Seiwald lives in the Alameda Gold Coast area with his wife and children.

Trans Pacific National Bank (TPNB) in San Francisco announced that Harrison Barnes of the Golden State Warriors will be riding in their car during this years’  Alameda Mayor’s 4th of July Parade.

TPNB, who is celebrating the 25th year anniversary of their branch in Alameda, has been a major sponsor of the parade for several years where funds from the event go to benefit the music programs throughout the schools in Alameda.

“We are thrilled to have Harrison agree to be in this years’ parade and it was fantastic to hear his support of this event and the community when we reached out to him,” said Michael Delucchi, Chief Administrative Officer of TPNB and member of the Alameda Parade Committee.

The Academy of Alameda Middle School, Alameda High School, Encinal High School, Lincoln Middle School, Saint Joseph Notre Dame High School, and the Cougar Cadet Corps of the Alameda Boys & Girls Club will all perform at this year's parade.

This is the most student bands to ever be part of the parade, and the Parade Committee has budgeted $10,000 to cover the cost of stipends to the schools’ music departments, and flatbeds to transport five of the bands.

Included in the $10,000, is a generous $2,000 donation from the Little House Café to sponsor the Lincoln Middle School Marching Band who will, once again, lead off the parade.

The Parade Committee is also sponsoring a Children’s Parade Poster Coloring Contest with the winning posters being published in the Alameda Sun Newspaper on July 4th.

A new parade record was this year with more than 192 entities signing up to participate in parade, which will be led by a U.S. Army Color Guard and U.S. Army Band.

Among the dignitaries in the parade are Alameda Mayor Marie Gilmore, U.S. Representative Barbara Lee and State Assembly Member Rob Bonta.

The parade will start at 10 a.m. at the corner of Lincoln Avenue and Park Street.

The Alameda Mayor’s 4th of July Parade is one of the largest and longest Independence Day paradesin the nation.

With over 170 floats and 2,500 participants who travel a three and a half mile route, the parade has become the central activity of the Bay Area’s Fourth of July weekend.

The parade boasts the longest parade route in the United States, drawing over 25,000 spectators from the region and was voted the “Best Hometown Celebration” for 2007 and “Best Hometown Parade” for 2008 by the East Bay Express.

To find out more about the contest, or for additional information regarding the Alameda Mayor’s 4th of July Parade we invite you to visit the website: www.alamedaparade.com or contact Paul Hauser at (510)995-8231 or at paulhreno@yahoo.com.