CINDY ELLEN RUSSELL / CRUSSELL@STARBULLETIN.COM
Members of Stand Up for America marched with flags during yesterday's parade in Kailua.
Islanders put on Many residents and tourists across the island donned red, white and blue yesterday to celebrate the first Fourth of July since the Sept. 11 attacks.
a patriotic party
Residents and tourists attend
the first July 4 festivities
since the attacks on Sept. 11By Rosemarie Bernardo
rbernardo@starbulletin.com"I didn't realize how proud I was to be an American until Sept. 11," said Pat Baxter.
Her husband, Don Baxter, said America is "the only place on earth where you have freedom. There's no country compared to us."
"We're fortunate to have freedom. ... People just take it for granted," said Long Island resident Shana Gallardo, who is vacationing in Waikiki with her husband, Adam.
The Baxters live along North Kainalu Drive and celebrated Kailua's annual Fourth of July parade by decorating their carport with U.S. flags and patriotic streamers and chairs.
Thousands of people lined Kainalu Drive. Many stood and clapped as four Marine Corps officials kicked off the parade while holding the nation's flag.
Kailua resident Michelle Zybura, who watched the annual parade for the first time, said children need to know what the Fourth of July represents.
It's not just having a barbecue and having a day off; it's a deeper meaning than a big party, Zybura said.
"They (children) have to learn that early on," she added.
Zybura said that along with supporting her son, 8-year-old Hunter, who marched with Boy Scout Troop 228, she attended the parade to honor "everyone who lost their lives (on Sept. 11)."
Some parade-goers wore T-shirts bearing the words "One nation under God," showing their support for the Pledge of Allegiance, which was declared unconstitutional last week because of the words "under God."
The ruling was issued out of the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals on a challenge brought by a California resident who did not approve of his daughter having to recite the pledge. The ruling has since been put on hold.
It is part of America's history and the nation's foundation, said Rusty Niau, former Kailua resident who now lives on the Big Island.
Friend Sandy Weatherwax agreed.
"It's something that's part of your life that has been taken away," Weatherwax said.
That sentiment was echoed by some of the thousands who spent the afternoon celebrating the Fourth of July at the third annual "Picnic in the Park" at Kapiolani Park.
Some stressed the significance of keeping the words "under God" as part of the pledge.
"Omitting those two important words are just crazy," said Shana Gallardo, a third-grade teacher at Ridge Elementary School in Long Island, N.Y.
