2023 4th of July Review and Photos
Kudos and great thanks to Event Chair Amanda Rule, her three other Park Overlook committee members Abby Wills, Ashley Chaney and Mandie DeWine, and the many other volunteers for what may very well have been the best Colonial Hills 4th of July Event subsequent to fifty years ago when the Colonial Hills 4th of July was the premier community holiday event in all of Worthington!
The best of the recent era? Yes! Amanda and her committee started planning for the event four months ago, and were able to provide many more midway games, plus a double-lane slip n’ slide (twice the fun!). the addition of the 50-50 raffle, a cotton-candy stand, both a youth and adult watermelon eating contest, plus the return of favorites such as the dunk tank, two bounce houses, face painting, Kona Ice and another delicious food vendor, Branded BBQ, with all activities seeming to flow seamlessly. The CHCA officers, along with former event chair Jenny Kendall, pitched in to help Amanda according to their roles with planning and implementation, including providing for Venmo payments, event direction, coordination with the City (Thanks, Worthington Parks and Rec and Police Departments!), putting up pop-up tents, announcing the activities, and photography — and resident Matt Steidel donated his sound equipment and play list, and former Park Overlook resident Brian Wright donated all those 2-liter bottles of pop for the ring toss game.
We estimate at least 300 or more people attended (there were 220 for Kona Ice alone!), and we suspect many of these folks hope that Amanda will be able to serve as Chair for many years to come!
The winners in our competitions were:
Race Results
The 5k Race Co-Chairs Courtney Jolley and Jeff Spain and their volunteers, yet again provided a great day for a 5k, with the greatest number of runners/walkers (201) since 2016! Courtney and Jeff’s planning and organizational expertise for the race was challenged this year much more than usual, by the ongoing excavation of Colonial Hills streets for the new water lines project, with Colonial and Foster being unavailable on race day as parts of the traditional Run Through the Hills course. Jeff and Courtney masterfully overcome this obstacle with a well-designed and well-marked alternate course, led by a Worthington Police Officer cruiser. Please see the separate 2023 5k Race Results blogpost for details.
We congratulate everyone who participated, and especially the overall winning runners, with their spectacular times: Jonathan Allen (14:59.97) and Hannah Moulton (16:53.89)! Please click on the links below to view:
- Overall Finish List Results
- Results by Age Group
- Our Race Results Archive, 1998-2023
- Or, select the Race website Results tab for searchable and age-group results
Kiddie Parade Winners, by Category
Long-time Chair Mary Ann Ogle again expertly planned and conducted this joyous event for the neighborhood. Mary Ann noted that we had a great turnout, a wonderful time was had by all participants (young and older), and the kids (with maybe some parental assistance) did a great job this year decorating their mode of transportation! Mary Ann thanks her judges: Robin Ogle (Co-Chair), Jim Kidd, Julie Freeman and Kathy Moore, who selected these winners in the following categories:
Bicycles
1st Place- Ellie Armstrong Phillips (11yrs)
2nd Place- TIE Eli Thines (4yrs) and Hannah Hughes (4yrs)
3rd Place- TIE Evie Miller (6yrs) and Becka Miller (5yrs)
Scooters
1st Place- Everly White (7yrs)
2nd Place- Iris Johnson (7yrs)
3rd Place- Sophie R. (10yrs) and Zenna R. (5yrs)
Strollers
1st Place- Tillie Guerrero
2nd Place- Hudson
3rd Place- Miya Semenya
Wagons and Floats
1st Place- Goose & Maverik (aka Joey & Emily Mittelman), Noah Mertz, Eli Mertz, Cassie, Shannon, Joe, Blanche, Sean
2nd Place- Hudson Spain
3rd Place- Naomi Lemnard
Dogs and Walkers
1st Place- Anna & Kramer with dog Maude
Watermelon Eating Contest Winners, by Category
The no-nonsense judge for the two contests made sure that the following winners were the first in their age group to finish their slice so that absolutely no red was showing:
Youth- Bennett Royse
Adult- Adam Calhoon
(And now for the photos – please click the “Continue reading” link below to see these pics which have the descriptions given below – photographer credit: CHCA Webmaster)
_01 Good Morning, Colonial Hills! Jeff Announces 5K Run Through the Hills
_02 Start of 5K
_03 Race Leaders After Start with Police Cruiser Leading the Way
_04 More Runners After Start with Police Cruiser in Distance
_05 Volunteer Christine Checks Off 5k Winner Jonathan Allen
_06 Courtney and Jeff Present Award to Rachael
_07 Courtney Presents Award to Jeff Shields, Perennial Top 20 Finisher (Won 1998, 2000, 4th 2008, 2nd 2009), Who Now Owns the 60+ Category
_08 Midway Setup Almost Complete – 9:45 AM
_09 Kiddie Parade Starting Line
_10 Mary Ann (with Bullhorn) Announces Kiddie Parade Route/Rules
_11 Start of Kiddie Parade Around Selby Park
_12 Kiddie Parade Co-Chairs Robin and Mary Ann Present Awards – Event Chair Amanda at Right by Door
_13 Robin and Mary Ann Present Kiddie Parade Awards
_14 Double Lane Water Slide – Twice the Fun!
_15 Two-Lanes Water Slide!
_16 Dunk Tank – Good Throwing Form but Slightly Off the Mark!
_17 Crafts Table
_18 Face Painting
_19 Midway Games
_20 Kids Bounce House
_21 Lollipop Tree
_22 Midway Games
_23 Receiving Her Prize for Plinko
_24 Dunk Tank – Splash Down! And Kona Ice to the Left!
_25 Youth Watermelon Eating Contest – Winner Bennett Royse (Light Blue Shirt at End)
_26 More Midway Games
_27 And More Midway Games!
_28 Gone Fishing Game
_29 Adult Watermelon Eating Contest – Winner is Declared To Be Adam Calhoon – Alan at Back
_30 Adult Watermelon Eating Contest – Winner Adam with Prize
_31 Branded BBQ and Cotton Candy! It Doesn’t Get Any Better than This!
