Janet Tressler Davis will lead July 4th Parade as Grand Marshal

Janet Tressler Davis has been selected to serve as Grand Marshal of the 2025 Rotary Club of Westerville Independence Day Parade on Friday, July 4.

Janet, a lifelong resident of Westerville, has led the Westerville Area Chamber of Commerce as its President and CEO of since August 1992. Earlier this month, Janet announced she will retire from the chamber in October.

Janet and her husband Jim have two children. Daughter Jordan Davis is a graduate of Ohio State University and son Jason Davis is a graduate of Otterbein University. Both reside in Columbus. And as of June 2025, Janet and Jim are the proud grandparents of two granddaughters. 

The Westerville South and Otterbein University alumna announced her pending retirement in a letter to Chamber members June 12.

“After much reflection and mixed emotions, I’ve decided the time has come to retire from the Westerville Area Chamber. It has truly been the honor of my life serving as President/CEO for the past 33 years – and being involved with the Chamber including volunteer roles, for 40 years,” she wrote. “I’ve loved every day of this work. It never felt like a job – it felt like purpose. That’s because of all of you,” she wrote to Chamber members

Since Janet took the helm, membership in the Chamber has more than doubled, and activities and benefits for members have expanded exponentially. Today hundreds of Chamber volunteers work on 11 committees actively designing and implementing organizational goals, including staging 44 networking/educational programs each year, and of course staging the annual Westerville Music & Arts Festival, set this year for July 12-13 at Heritage Park.

This year’s Independence Day Parade will step off as usual at 10:30 a.m. from St. Paul Church and proceed south from Old County Line Road to conclude at Electric Avenue, where the procession turns east to disembark at Westerville South High School. More than 130 entries are expected.

The Rotary Club of Westerville has led the community’s Independence Day Celebration since 1962. Today it has grown to become a daylong event, including:

• The Rotary Honors Vets 5K Walk-Run at 7:30 a.m. Register by Thursday, July 3 to participate!
• The State Street Parade at 10:30 a.m. This year’s parade theme is “Stars, Stripes, & Freedom Unite,” chosen by Mark Twain Elementary first-grader Ahmed Adu.
• The Free Concert & Food Truck Festival at the Westerville Sports Complex, from 5 p.m. to 9:50 p.m. The musical acts this year are Country artist Lee Ganttfrom 5-7:10 p.m., and LDNL (formerly Lieutenant Dan’s New Legs) from 7:40-9:50 p.m. LDNL performs an eclectic mix of genres, including pop, dance, funk, jazz, R&B, rock, and gospel. DJ James Mintner of Buckeye Media Services will entertain before and between acts, backed with programmed music from The River 104.9 FM.
• Westerville’s 2025 Fireworks Display, at 10 p.m. The Rotary Club of Westerville’s daylong Independence Day Celebration concludes, as always, with our big Fireworks Show, presented with the sponsorship of the City of Westerville. The fireworks begin after the last band leaves the stage at the concert. The Fireworks Show is timed to patriotic music, simulcast live from the concert venue at the Sports Complex and broadcast by Westerville radio station 9 FM The River.

The best place to catch the Fireworks Show will be the Westerville Sports Complex, the site of the concert. Residents are encouraged to bring lawn chairs, set up at the Sports Complex to catch the Free Concert and Food Truck Festival, and stick around for the great fireworks!