Gahanna 4th of July event celebrates USA, civic duty

GAHANNA, Ohio (WCMH) -- Dozens of people gathered Saturday for a brand-new event in downtown Gahanna. It's called the Red, White, and Blue Block Party.

Organizer John Spinelli says they did a test run of the event last year, but this year they wanted to do more.

Of course, like most 4th of July celebrations, there was food and festivities, but what makes this one different? Civic duty.

Spinelli is the president of the Gahanna Foundation. The group is using this event as a fundraiser but also as a chance to get more people registered to vote.

"You can't complain if you didn't vote, said Spinelli, "we have people in there getting people signed up to vote."

The foundation also offered immigration tests and classes to get people the correct information to receive citizenship.

Organizers say Sunday's celebration is just one way they give back to their community. People we spoke with agree, it's nice to have something like this so close to home.

"We love having all this stuff here because we can walk from our house," said one participant.