The Rev. Scott Hanks figures the throngs of people who lined Massachusetts Street last July 4 proved the need for an Independence Day parade in Lawrence.

Hanks’ congregation, Heritage Baptist Church, had one of 55 entries in the parade last year, which was the first of its kind in Lawrence in several years.

“It forces you to think about America and our heritage,” Hanks said. “Any time you can show your patriotism, I’m all for it.”

But Lawrence’s official Fourth of July parade may be short-lived.

The Sesquicentennial Commission, which organized last year’s parade to attract attention to the city’s 150th birthday this year, has decided not to sponsor the parade again. Clenece Hills, president of the commission, said the group hoped another community organization would take over the parade, but that has yet to happen.

“The bottom line is, we couldn’t do this forever,” Hills said. “In a couple years, the Sesquicentennial Commission will be defunct.”

Several factors combined to convince the organization’s board not to have the parade this year, she said. First, Independence Day this year falls on a Sunday, which would mean either possible conflicts with church activities or moving the parade to another day.

Also, the Sesquicentennial Commission didn’t have resources to plan both the Independence Day parade and the larger parade scheduled for Sept. 18, the city’s official 150th anniversary.

Members of the Heritage Baptist Church carry the churches' 600-square-foot U.S. flag down Massachusettes Street during the July 4th parade.

And commission members were concerned that having a downtown parade would take away from neighborhood parades, which have a long tradition in the city.

“We saw such support for neighborhood parades, which are really wonderful,” she said. “We want to encourage those neighborhoods to have those parades.”

But parade participants such as Hanks are hoping another organization will pick up where the Sesquicentennial Commission left off. He said that with troops in Iraq and Afghanistan, it seemed like an appropriate time to continue what could become a long-standing Lawrence tradition.

“I think any time is appropriate to honor our country, our heritage and our troops,” he said. “It’s a real miracle how America came about.”

6News video: Independence Day Parade fizzles out July 4th, Parade 2003 Despite city’s fireworks ban, Lawrence residents have blast (7-5-04) First July 4 parade to roll through town (7-4-03) 6News video: Lawrence celebrates July 4th (7-5-03) 6News video: Old West Lawrence neighbors have their own Independence Day parade (7-5-03) Apathy reigns on July 4 parade (6-2-03) July 4 parade to celebrate city, nation (4-17-03) Parade envisioned to kick off sesquicentennial celebration (9-26-02) More Fourth of July stories Lawrence Sesquicentennial Celebration Web site