Preparations are in full swing for the 30th anniversary of the Thorold Santa Claus Parade which will take place in downtown Thorold on Saturday, Nov. 26.
“It is the thirtieth anniversary of the parade so we’re hoping to make it a little bit more special than previous years,” says the city’s Program Supervisor of Community Services, Stephanie Jarvis, in an interview with ThoroldToday. “We have over 35 entries to the parade so far, with a combination of floats, marching bands—just a really broad range of participants.”
As ThoroldToday reported, City Hall has taken responsibility for this year's parade, after volunteer organizers flagged liability issues.
Councillor Nella Dekker, who sits on the city’s Special Events Committee, was instrumental in getting the issue before city council.
“I fought really hard to get this going,” she tells ThoroldToday. “It’s a mission that I had and I’m so glad it finally came to fruition.”
Dekker says that she didn’t do it alone and other committee members such as Sebastian Soccio-Marandola were instrumental in getting the ball rolling as well.
Having a Santa Claus Parade is an important part of engaging local residents, according to Dekker.
“It brings our community together,” she says. “We have a lot of people that come out to this parade. We get hundreds and hundreds of people and it brings [them] into our downtown core. We thought it was really important to get the community out and give them something to look forward to.”
Even though the city is in charge of organizing the event, they’re still being supported by volunteers of the Santa Claus Parade Committee.
“They’ve been really helping us,” says Jarvis. “They’ve been meeting us on a weekly basis to kind of help support us through this transition. They’ve been giving us extra guidance to make it a little bit more seamless.”
Jarvis says that it’s important that the parade feels familiar to residents.
“I really think that the parade has been such an important tradition in the community for so many years,” she says. “We don’t want to change too much. We just want to honour what people have started in the past and support that and continue it on this year.”
Groups that have been part of the parade in previous years have come through this year as well.
“We’ve been really fortunate to have all that support from them,” Jarvis says. “For example, the TCAG is going to be collecting for Community Care. They’re going to be collecting donations, including food, during the parade.”
Because it is the 30th anniversary of the event, the city hopes to make the parade extra special.
"On the day of the parade we’re going to have some additional prizes and just a few activities happening at the side of the road," says Jarvis. "Just to kind of celebrate and in honour of the 30th anniversary so lots of fun stuff is happening."
With only 11 days to go until the event, the bulk of preparations is already complete.
“The next few weeks will really just be kind of finalizing, just getting those final details in line before the parade,” says Jarvis. “We’re getting ready. It’s under two weeks so we’re almost there. We’re still welcoming entries, we’re still welcoming volunteers, so anybody who is interested can definitely check out our website or Facebook page.”
This is the first time the parade will take place since the pandemic started, and the city is intent on making it a special day for all.
“After a couple years break I think that it’s really important because it is something that marks the start of the holidays for so many of our residents,” says Jarvis. “It’s going to be an exciting opportunity for everyone and we can’t wait to see everyone there.”
Councillor Dekker for her part is already counting down the days.
“I’m so excited, you have no idea,” she says. “People come from all over to see the parade. It’s really a darn good parade.”
The Thorold Santa Claus Parade will take place on Saturday, Nov. 26 from 4 p.m. until roughly 6 p.m.
The Parade begins at the intersection of Collier Road and Sullivan Ave. Heading east on Sullivan Ave, the Parade will continue to Front Street, turning left and ending at the intersection of Front and Regent Street. Sidewalks will be open for Spectators to view the Parade along Sullivan Ave and Front Street.
If you would like to participate or volunteer at the parade, head over to the city's website.