The 16th of July

Hello Nice People,

 

Today is the 16th of July.  Thats how it has been said for many years.  Not July 16th, but "The 16th of July. " And when we refer to the 16th of July, we mean the Mount Carmel Celebration in Hammonton.  This year, 2008 will be the 133rd time for this celebration.  This is a week long celebration. A carnival, Fire works,Mass all day at St. Josephs Church, and lots of GOOD Italian food.  The 16th was a celebration that was never missed if you were of Italian descent....and the same even if you were not.  The procession of statues starts at 2 PM and winds thru the streets of Hammonton for 3 hours.  It only goes 6 or 8 blocks but it travels so slow that it takes all of 3 hours, while everyone recites the Rosary.  As it passes thru the crowds people pin money to their favorite statue.  (There go those crazy Catholics and their statues again.)

 

         The 16th is a day that the oldsters  would meet at the same spot every year.  They would set their chairs in front of  the same house every year and meet all their friends from near and far.

Hammonton, NJ: Where everybody knows your name: Our Lady of Mt. Carmel

 

      Unfortunatley many of the old folks have died off.  A lot of us that are left do not go anymore. I hear that it is not as big a crowd as it used tobe.   Hubby and I stopped going about 10 years ago because their just are too many rowdys looking for trouble or to pick  some pockets.  Its just like many things in this day,  they are just not what they used to be.  But "The 16th of July" still means the same thing in our hearts.

 

                                             Marlene

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