Kirkland’s 4th of July celebration is creeping up on us and so far this has been a very difficult fund-raising year.

I fear the tediously slow economic recovery is making a lot of organizations and people hesitate longer before making commitments.

At this point we are still almost $40,000 away from our necessary goal and the timeline is closing fast.

Tod and Brett Johnson of Lee Johnson Auto family have really stepped up and are sponsoring the parade this year. They will match up to $10,000 in contributions so anything you can do will go even further in helping us meet our goal.

The 4th of July celebration in Kirkland is one of our finest traditions. Thousands and thousands of our citizens will attend the parades and fireworks. It really is a day we celebrate the pride we have both in our country and our very special hometown.

Anything you can do will help! I’d love to hear from you or go to our webpage at www.celebratekirkland.org.

Penny Sweet, Kirkland