On behalf of the Silverdale Lions clubs, I want to thank everyone who came out to watch the Whaling Days Parade on July 27.

If you missed it, or want to watch it again, tune into Comcast Channel 12 or Wave Cable Channel 3 on Aug. 4 at noon.

Virtually all the work before and during the parade is done by volunteers and we would like to thank the following individuals and organizations for stepping forward to make this year’s parade a success:

Our judging team of Captain Steve Williamson, CO Puget Sound Naval Shipyard/IMF; Captain Pete Dawson, CO, Naval Base Kitsap; Hazel Bauman, superintendent of Central Kitsap schools; Marilynn Danby Lions Club 19 C District Governor; Monte Faust Lions Zone Chairman 19-C4 and Kathleen Knuckey executive director, Silverdale Chamber of Commerce;

Chico Towing for providing a reviewing stand platform; Gordon Sound for the PA system; our announcers, Bud Grahn and Rob MacDermid; Silverdale United Methodist Church for reviewing stand chairs; Silverdale Target Store for the use of their parking lot as a staging area; Jack Bailey, Port of Brownsville commissioner, for providing radios used to manage the parade; WestSound Community Television for videotaping the parade; Silvercity Automotive for transporting the Grand Marshal; and Jim White of the Kitsap County Sheriff’s office and his support team that coordinated road closures and traffic control.

After being involved with Whaling Days since 1985, it is time for me to focus my energy on other activities and for someone else to have the opportunity to put the parade together. I want to express a special thank you to Jan Lamphere who has worked with me for many years in organizing the scripts and the parade.

Roland Arper

Silverdale