A patriotic tradition since 1892
(Oceanside, CA) MainStreet Oceanside, a non-profit group founded in 2000, will be honoring four Hometown Heroes at this year’s Oceanside’s Independence Day Parade on June 24th.
The Annual Oceanside Independence Day Parade will occur on Saturday, June 24th. The downtown Oceanside parade will take place, as usual, on Coast Highway from Wisconsin Avenue to Civic Center Drive. The event kicks off at 10:00 a.m. and ends at noon with more than 100 parade entries expected to march, roll, walk and drive down the famous 101 Coast Highway.
Executive Director, Rick Wright said, “We are glad to honor these Hometown Heroes that have given to our community.”
This year’s Hometown Heroes are:
The late Herb Meyer, graduate from Oceanside-Carlsbad High school, was a teacher and coach for over 47 years in Oceanside. For 45 years he served as the Head Coach. Herb was one of the most highly respected interscholastic coaches in the history of the game. From 1995 to 2022, he has received many awards, including induction into the National Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Hall of Fame, El Camino High School Football Hall of Fame and the California High School Football Hall of Fame. At the time of his retirement, Herb had more wins than any coach in the history of California High School football with 338 victories and winning 10 CIF championships. He is honored with the renaming of the El Camino High School football stadium, now known as the Herb Meyer Stadium since 2003. He was a Teacher, Coach, Speaker and Mentor.
Anne Garrett has dedicated over 12 years by spreading the message to the public of the foundation as their Spokesperson, Move Your Feet Before You Eat. “ You can experience a lot with your many miles of smiles, with friends and family no matter your running or walking pace.” Octogenarian, she inspires many to get out there, walk or run, and enjoy.
Jaime (Jimmy) Figueroa, Oceanside Native and resident, is the Executive Director of Operation HOPE-North County, a homeless shelter for families with children and single women. From 2018-2022, Jimmy helped develop and implement the juvenile reentry program Resilience Community Mentoring where he served as Program Manager. Resilience was created in partnership with the San Diego County Probation Department and the Vista Community Clinic. Prior to that, he worked with Oceanside Promise creating a Pilot
Initiative for Latinx youth and as Program Supervisor for Project REACH Libby Lake. Jimmy is an alumnus of the MiraCosta Community Learning Center and MiraCosta College, holds a B.A. in political science from UC Berkeley and a Juris Doctor Degree from the Thomas Jefferson School of Law. He is a strong community advocate for the underserved, and currently holds leadership roles within the North County Gang Commission, Oceanside Police and Fire Commission, MiraCosta College Foundation, and Oceanside Theatre Company.
Daniel Guillou is a wheelchair rugby champion, a math educator, volunteer and a dog lover. He stated, “I broke my neck when I was 16 years old in Wisconsin, but that did not stop me from pursuing my dreams. I moved to Oceanside in 1994 and love it.” He won a gold medal at the 2000 Sydney Paralympics playing wheelchair rugby. He received his education from Mira Costa College and CSUSM. He worked in the math learning center for 17 years at Mira Costa College, helping students succeed in math. In addition, he volunteered with his second service dog NARHA from Canine Companions at Teri Learning Academy and Casa de Amparo, bringing joy and comfort to children with special needs. He now spends his spare time volunteering for Canine Companions.
The late Herb Meyer will be honored this year in the Parade Program. You will be able to see each of the remaining Heroes on the Parade Route followed by some of the participating groups that they have supported.
MainStreet Oceanside, the parade organization, is accepting volunteers for the Independence Day Parade. To assist with the parade, online applications are on the website http://OceansideParade.com/. To speak to someone about the Independence Day Parade, please call MainStreet Oceanside at 760-754-4512.
