&uot;He’ll probably get better gas mileage out of this (car), then candy mileage,&uot; said Tom Plemmons about he and his father’s 1971 Oldsmobile 442 and all the candy in the car awaiting those gathering along the parade route Monday in Eclipse for the annual Fourth of July Parade.

The patriotic celebration has become a tradition in the community, and it is now a big part of the C. E. H Ruritan Club’s yearly planning as well as for co-host Ebenezer United Methodist Church.

&uot;We have one major fundraiser every year,&uot; said Michael Mullen, president of the Crittenden Ruritans, &uot;and it supplies the money we then use for the fireworks each year.

&uot;Thank goodness we have a beautiful day with beautiful weather. I see smiles on faces and it’s really a wonderful time for the community to come together and for friends to make new friends.

In the parade itself were numerous young bike riders at the head of line, followed by the Chuckatuck and Carrollton fire departments, numerous antique cars and trucks, horseback riders, and other vehicles.

andrew.giermak@suffolknewsherald.com