This isn't the first year a shortage of funds in the months leading up to annual Arbutus 4th of July Parade has put the summer tradition at risk.
But this year's worries might be the worst, longtime parade organizer George Kendrick said.
Of the $23,000 Kendrick says he needs to run the event, he said he only has $11,000 so far, and July is inching closer every day.
While parade attendance has remained steady over the past years, the number of people contributing money to the event has dwindled, he said.
"If I could get two bucks from every household, it would cover the whole thing," Kendrick said. "People don't understand that it costs money" to put the parade on every year.
In recent years, Kendrick said, it has not been uncommon for the money to be a little short of the goal this time of year.
But Kendrick said he chalked the lack of donations in those years to a weak economy. By this year, he figured things would have bounced back.
Most of the money goes to the bands and other entertainment that have to travel to Arbutus from other states in order to participate. With musicians coming from Florida, South Carolina and Georgia, travel expenses and hotel bills add up, he said.
Earlier this year, Kendrick's wife, Naamah, passed away, leaving the 92-year-old feeling more burdened than ever.
Although he and his family are running the parade this year, he says he doesn't know who will be in charge of the 2016 event.
"That takes a lot of my spunk out of it," he said, adding that Naamah was a huge part of putting the event together every year.
In addition to the six weeks left before July 4 to collect donations, the annual Arbutus Firecracker 10K, held on July 4 at 8 a.m., will offset some of the costs associated with the parade. The race entry fee is $30 and past races have drawn more than 500 participants.
Bryan Sheppard, who represents the area south of Route 40 in County Executive Kevin Kamenetz's Office of Community Outreach, said the region's many Fourth of July parades are an integral part of the southwestern Baltimore County community.
"They're great community draws, and they're drawing in people from all over," he said, noting that Kamenetz attends the parade in Arbutus every year. "We love them."
Richard Greene, who owns Arbutus Auto Body on Leeds Avenue, helps organize the parade line-up. He said he thinks the parade will go on for years to come, but it may have to be a smaller, more scaled-back event than Arbutus residents are used to seeing march along East Drive through the heart of downtown.
If funding continues to be a problem, event organizers may chose to forego some of the entertainment brought in from out of town, he said.
He stressed that a line must be drawn determining how many cuts the parade can withstand.
"I think it's something that's going to continue every year," he said. "I can't imagine it not going on."
Contributing to the problem with funding, Greene speculated, may be a lack of knowledge in the community about just how badly the parade needs donations from residents, local businesses and other groups interested in the annual tradition.
In a constant search to find his replacement as head of the parade, Kendrick said he hopes by next year to have someone else in charge of organizing and running the event.
For now, he said, the 2015 parade will go on as scheduled, no matter how much more money he raises.
But next year's event could be up in the air.
"I'll do everything to keep it going," he said. "But when you take over, you've got to take over the whole thing."