Daytona Beach July 4th Celebration Begins With Veterans Ceremony

Daytona Beach, FL – This year’s Fourth of July celebration in Daytona Beach begins with a special July 4th Veterans Ceremony at 9 a.m. followed by a Veterans Parade at 10 a.m.  The ceremony and parade are organized by the Marine Corps League Daytona. Commandant Sam McCloud said that the ceremony will honor deceased Master Gunnery Sgt. Hobson McLeod-Bethune, who retired from the U.S. Marine Corps after 28 years. "We’re going to honor every year on the Fourth of July, a deceased Volusia County veteran. This year will be the first year, Mary McCloud-Bethune’s grandson. He was killed in a motorcycle accident in 2017." McCloud says a number of Volusia County military organizations will be part of the ceremony and the parade. "There’s going to be a flag-raising ceremony, Vietnam Vets of America is going to perform that and  Mayor Henry’s going to read a proclamation honoring Hobson. There will a three-round volley salute and taps blown." The July 4th Veterans Parade begins at 10 a.m. on the east side of A-1-A at Main Street. The parade’s lineup will feature nearly 20 local military organizations, as well as combat veterans, and the city’s police and fire departments. The public can view the parade from the sidewalks along Main Street.  There will be some street closures in the area.  Beginning at 9 a.m. Main Street will be closed to motorists from Halifax Avenue to Atlantic Avenue Halifax Avenue, Peninsula Drive, and Atlantic Avenue will remain open until the parade reaches those intersections. When it does north and southbound traffic on those streets will be stopped to allow the parade to cross. The city’s traditional fireworks display begins at 9:45 p.m. Sunday over the Atlantic Ocean, near the Boardwalk and Daytona Beach Pier.