ACCIDENT, Maryland — By noon on the Fourth of July, families and their children in this Garrett County town will have just finished the annual fireman’s parade that will stretch all the way down Main Street and be filled with local bands, floats, fire equipment and plenty of red, white, and blue regalia.

This town does a great job of really educating the children about the importance of this profoundly important holiday that marks the beginning of the long and arduous road our forefathers took to get us to independence. And, too, of the generations that followed who have fought, sometimes giving the ultimate sacrifice, to protect those freedoms and liberties.