Carnival and parade marches on

AMENIA — The Amenia Fire Company will hold its 82nd annual carnival Wednesday to Saturday, July 2 to 5, from 6:30 until 10 p.m.

The fair grounds will be on Mechanic Street next to Town Hall and will include a ferris wheel, bumper cars, merry-go-round, children’s rides and adult games of chance and bingo.

On Friday night at 8 p.m., the The Nightcaps will play, with Shadow Creek playing at the same time on Saturday.

"The carnival is the department’s biggest fundraiser of the year, so we’re counting on people to attend," company member Andy Murphy said. "We will be having fireworks on Saturday at 10 p.m., which will be visible to anyone in town. We are hoping people will come to have a good time. There’s always something for everybody at the carnival. The department is a 100 percent volunteer organization, so it would be nice to have support from the public in these tough economic times. We’re always there when people need us."

On Friday, July 4, at 7 p.m., the fire company’s annual parade will be held and will include fire departments throughout the area as well as floats and marching bands.

This year, the parade route has changed from previous years: The parade will begin at Beekman Park, go down through Route 44 to the traffic light, straight through the traffic light and down toward Mechanic Street.

Last year, 23 fire departments, eight color guards, seven marching bands and several area groups marched in the parade. Fire and police companies from Amenia, Wassaic, Millerton, Sharon and Falls Village, Conn., took part in the event, showing off their fire engines and various equipment, including pumpers and several antique engines.