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In this year’s Fourth of July parade in Friday Harbor, sponsored by the San Juan Island Chamber of Commerce, 16 organizations — each dedicated to the protection of the endangered Southern Resident Killer Whale — will be marching together showing their shared support of the orcas.

Our region’s resident orcas — J, K and L pods — are at a critical juncture. NOAA has declared Southern Resident Killer Whales one of only eight “Spotlight” species (out of 1,652 on the Endangered Species list). Spotlight species are considered most at risk of extinction unless immediate action is taken to stabilize and recover their populations.

As an alliance of Orca Protectors, over 120 people will be marching with 86 life-size dorsal fins — representing the 78 living free members of the J, K and L pods, plus the 1 living in captivity (L-25, Tokitae aka “Lolita”) plus 7 white “ghost fins” for the whales that died in 2016. Marchers will also be carrying schools of salmon (the orcas’ favorite food is the endangered Chinook salmon) as well as larger-than-life-size puppets representing other creatures from the Salish Sea; and a giant Earth Ball will be carried by children with the banner “Protect What You Love”

Sharing their love for the orcas, the orca protectors will be in keeping with the parade’s theme: “America…All That We Share. Celebrating our community and the common ideals that connect us”.

Rated as one of the top 10 small town parades in the nation, the Friday Harbor July Fourth parade begins at 10:30 a.m., passing through town on Spring Street and ending on the waterfront at approximately noon.