Community Corner

Surf Club Shows Patriotic Spirit; Fireworks Go Off As Planned (With Video And Photo Gallery)

Never Mind The Less Than Perfect Weather, People Gather At Surf Club And Beaches All Over Town Celebrate the Fourth of July

The Madison Surf Club saw a damp, but enthusiastic crowd at Sunday afternoon’s Fourth of July festivities, despite the onslaught of showers and threat of thunderstorms.

Some brave souls even lined up as early as 5 a.m. to reserve their spot by the water. 

“This was the only table we could find,” chuckled Chris, a recent Daniel Hand High School graduate who, with his friends Morgan, CJ, Tina, Alex, Olivia, and Megan, barbecue weekly at the Surf Club. “The population of Madison has doubled!”

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“There’s a lot of New York license plates and it’s hard to find a parking spot,” said CJ’s friend Ashley, ducking under the small real estate of tree coverage the group scoped out. “I don’t mind [the rain]. Instead of swimming, I’ll just get wet. 

Preserving this weekly tradition is important to this crew of soon-to-be collegiates, who head in different directions at the end of summer. 

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Most attendees weathered and hunkered at the Surf Club echoed the sentiment: this was to be a celebration of family togetherness and friendship.

“My brother invited us to come to the beach for the day and watch the fireworks at night,” said Eileen Tressler, from Newtown, “We decided that even though the rain came, we would rough it out and hope it passes soon. It doesn’t really both the kids [and] we’re doing fine.”

“Our sons wanted to come to the beach,” added Dympna Gallagher from Manhattan. “It didn’t matter if it was going to rain or not.”

Walter and Lindsay Smith, siblings, orchestrated a large, multigenerational gathering of friends and family. Lindsay, in charge of reserving tables and a barbecue space, arrived at the Surf Club at 5:30 a.m., where she saw ten to fifteen cars already in cue.

“Well, a good amount of us grew up here,” said Walter. “We’re here for the fireworks [and] we’re going to stick it out!”

 “I was hoping it wasn’t going to rain,” said Devon Brown, a local basketball player waiting for the fireworks to begin. “I’ll probably just man up...or go under that thing over there.” 

The crowd at the Surf Club, the other town beaches, and Hammonasset Beach State Park were rewarded around 9:30 p.m. with a spectacular display of fireworks that lasted about 22 minutes and left crowds all along the shoreline cheering.


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