Pioneer Day 2017

By grandparents,Leah and Joseph Harker and my mom Maurine Smith And me about three  around 1954, Pioneer Day celebrations in Boise, Idaho

One of the best things about living in Salt Lake and Boise is that you get to major holidays smack dab in the middle of the summer. I don't know what I would do if I lived in a state that did not celebrate Pioneer Day. The Fourth of July course is a natural and everyone celebrates the Fourth of July in this country but Pioneer Day that's something different. As far as I know Idaho and Utah and mainly southern Idaho for the two regions that really celebrate this Mormon holiday to the point where private businesses often shut down for a day of parades, picnics and fireworks.

Pioneer Day is a state holiday the federales ID post office and other federal agencies are working many national and international businesses carry on business as usual. The Salt Lake City bus system, Utah Transit Authority also carries on business as usual in fact they extend hours of some of the bus routes to meet the need of commuters participated in fireworks celebrations around the city.The bus drivers have the option of addressing the Western garb for this day and many do. Some of the drivers really didn't whole thing sometimes it's kind of tedious at least for me.This is my first 24^th at this facility where I am living but I don't think there'll be much change in the routine with the exception of a great deal of fireworks in the park next door and around the neighborhood. If the Fourth of July is any indicator it should be aloud neighborhood this evening.

I came into this town for work. I was hired by private nonprofit agency and for the first 15 or so years I was in Salt Lake I pretty much work on Pioneer Day. The city has a giant parade Days of 47 Parade. There is an event following the parade. The days of 47 can include in Liberty Park. Everything and everybody in the parade ends of there. In an effort to make the event of the conclusion of the parade private nonprofits were offered the option of setting up information tables in the park. The Utahwho Independent Living Center, for which I was employed, for many years at a table in the park. The point was to try to raise money as well as awareness. Over that time we gave away water, ice cream, candy and hardly any information. I enjoyed the event because it allowed me to h willave time off the following week or month which I always liked but there is something miserable about having to work on holiday. Even after the Center stopped participating in this event ourselves guilty when we did not.

I thought about getting up early and heading downtown to see the parade, it's a huge ordeal, people would really come from all over the world to see this silly parade. There are families who come from out of state and literally camp on the sidewalks and peoples front yards in order to get the best space available for viewing the spectacle, and the homeowners often let them do it it's amazing. I do not need that kind of chaos people standing at least three people the. I'm glad I went to the parade on the fourth and got all that humanity smiling out of my system.