PHOTO COURTESY OF CITY OF MILTON

Milton Days, taking place Aug. 15 and 16, will include a live music show, parade and picnic. The picnic will feature vendor booths, a chalk art contest, free lunch, bouncy toys and a trout pond.

City prepares for Milton Days event

By Meghan Erkkinen

As summer heats up, so does Milton as it prepares for its annual picnic and parade. Milton Days, taking place this year on Aug. 15 and 16, will feature live music, fireworks, free food and fun and games.

“It’s a great community event,” said organizer Marian McGunagle. “It’s just a lot of fun for the whole family.”

The first day of the event will feature live music by The Great Pretenders, followed by a fireworks display. The second day will begin in the morning with a parade down Milton Way, followed by a community picnic with free lunch, live music, a chalk art contest, games, bouncy toys and a trout pond.

City employees are scrambling to pull the event together.

“It’s just fun to see the employees work together to get this off of the ground and make it fun for the community,” McGunagle said. “It takes hours of work, and it takes months of work in preparation…from ordering everything from port-a-potties to making sure we’ve got chips to go with lunch. I know the employees at city hall are putting in a lot of time and effort to put this together.”

Last year, the event drew about 1,500 people for an especially large event for the city’s centennial.

Visitors are encouraged to bring non-perishable food items for the Tacoma Adventist Community Service, a food bank serving those with special dietary needs.

On Aug. 15, the Block Party event will begin at 5 p.m. and live music will begin at 6 p.m. Fireworks will follow the show. On Aug. 16, the parade along Milton Way – between 19th and 11th Streets – will begin at 11 a.m. The community picnic will begin at noon and goes until 4 p.m.

McGunagle encourages everyone to come out, but requests that pets stay at home. Service animals are welcome. For more information on the event, visit www.cityofmilton.net.

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