Photograph by R.W. Bradford
Dr. José Cuellar of Dr. Loco's Rockin' Jalapeño Band, plays saxaphone for the July 4th crowd.
By MICHELLE KU
Organizers termed this year's Fourth of July celebration at the Sunnyvale Community Center a success despite lower attendance than in previous years.
"I think that everyone was very impressed," said Patrick Flanders, who coordinated the event for Sunnyvale's Parks and Recreation Department. "It was incredibly successful, one of the best Fourth of Julys that we've produced in the past five years.
The department estimates that approximately 3,500 people attended the event. On average, Sunnyvale's Fourth of July celebrations typically draw 5,000 to 7,000 people.
But Glenn Hannon, Parks and Recreation's program director, said the lower numbers could be attributed to the event being held at a new, smaller site. Last year's celebration was held at Baylands Park.
"Overall, we thought it was great," Hannon said. 'We were going for a hometown feel. We had anticipated that there might be lower numbers."
People of all ages attended the celebration, which featured carnival games, a petting zoo, pony rides, face painting, musical entertainment and food.
The carnival games were very popular with the children. The 13 game booths ranged from the "Fish Pond," where players caught plastic fish in a tub of water, to "Can Can," which involved throwing bean bags at cans and knocking them off a pedestal.
Both Dr. Loco's Rockin' Jalapeño Band--a salsa, rock and jazz band--and Mojo Madness--a funk and rhythm and blues band--entertained a crowd of people sitting on blankets on the community center's lawn.
While most people who attended the event were Sunnyvale residents, the celebration also attracted people from other communities.
This article appeared in the Sunnyvale Sun, July 10, 1996.
©1996 Metro Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved.