SAUGUS — Although Lynnhurst Elementary School has been closed for two years, the 106-year-old Independence Day tradition born on its field is still alive and well.
Families dressed head to toe in red, white, and blue attire gathered at the Dana H. Johnson Memorial Park Tuesday for a morning of patriotic fun. Hundreds of children ran around the field playing, eating hot dogs, and competing in a number of competitions such as three-legged and potato-sack races, a pie-eating contest, and a search, in which young children dug through a stack of hay to find dollar bills and candy.
Since it began in 1917, the town’s Fourth of July celebration at Lynnhurst has always been an event planned and funded by the community. Throughout the years, different Saugus families have taken turns organizing it, with the current organizers, Jaclyn and Derek Hickman, taking over in 2019.
Derek Hickman, a firefighter in town, said he has fond memories of attending the celebration as a child. When the opportunity to organize the event came his way four years ago, he and Jaclyn Hickman, a Precinct 5 Town Meeting member, jumped on it.
Keeping with tradition, Derek Hickman said the footraces and haystack searches will always be present. In the next few years, he hopes to add more activities for adults.
“It’s something that we can celebrate with everybody around here and it’s likely going to get bigger. It’s just about celebrating your freedom,” Derek Hickman said. “The main thing is keeping the tradition, but we’ll add stuff over time.”
At 11 a.m., a firetruck parked on the street and sprayed a massive stream of water on the field for the kids to play underneath. Derek Hickman said the firetruck spray started a few years back, but based on the response to it, he hopes he can make it a part of the tradition.
With the Lynnhurst School permanently closed, Jaclyn Hickman said she hoped the annual event would keep the field open for years to come. It is dedicated to Dana Johnson, who died saving two men from drowning in 1971.
“I’m really going to work on preserving this field because the gentleman who fought to get this field [Lee Johnson] recently passed away, and it’s in honor of one of his family members,” Jaclyn Hickman said. “They’re talking about all different things, whether it’s housing or whatnot, at the Lynnhurst School, but we just want to preserve this area here just to keep this tradition going.”
Dana Johnson’s cousin Stephen Johnson echoed Jaclyn Hickman’s words.
“It’s been going on since before I was born. My dad was a big part of it when I was growing up, and now my son’s involved and keeping it going. It’s the only [Independence Day celebration] left in town as far as I know. Hopefully this park remains here. Irrelevant of what they do with the school, the playground is needed,” Stephen Johnson said.
Almost every adult present at Tuesday’s celebration had at least one childhood memory at the Lynnhurst Independence Day celebration. Board of Selectmen Vice Chair Debra Panetta said both of her children, now in their 20s, attended Lynnhurst. For more than two decades, Panetta — who volunteers each year — said her family never missed a Fourth of July celebration.
“It’s just great to see people that care about the neighborhood, people that care about our town, Saugus, and people who want to do something special for the children. That’s exactly what we’re doing here — look at how excited they are and when they win, their faces just light up,” Panetta said. “It’s just so heartwarming and it brings everyone together.”
