Longtime Carol Stream 4th of July parade volunteers to be this year’s grand marshals

Kim and Rick Gieser, who volunteered and chaired the Carol Stream Independence Day Parade for 20 years, will be the grand marshals for the 2024 parade.

“Kim & Rick led the parade for 20 years,” said Shari Bulvas from the Carol Stream Parade Committee. “We want to show our appreciation for all the work they did to create a great parade each year.”

The couple have been members of the Carol Stream Parade Committee for 20 years. They have overseen all aspects of the parade: fundraising, booking entertainment, volunteer recruitment, coordination with village of Carol Stream, monthly meetings, community outreach, coordination of entries, announcing during parade broadcast, and more.

This year’s parade theme will be “Stars, Strips & Smiles.” The parade begins at 10 a.m. on Thursday, July 4.

The parade begins at the corner of Lies and County Farm roads, and continues down Lies Road, ending at the Ross Ferraro Town Center.

Participants include: the Jesse White Tumblers, the Glenbard North Marching Band, the Shriner Cruzin’ Coolers, the 501st Midwest Garrison Star Wars group, Those Funny Little People, the Midwest Jeep Alliance, police cars, fire trucks, community groups and more.

For information on the parade, visit www.carolstreamparade.com.