THUNDER BAY - The cold temperatures and brisk wind wasn’t going to put a freeze on the city's Christmas spirit and it actually served as a warm welcome for Jolly Ole Saint Nick.
“What are we talking about, minus 10 or so, certainly we are tough enough in Thunder Bay to be able to handle those elements,” said Warren Philp, co-chair of the Annual Rotary Santa Claus Parade.
The parade, now in its 28th year, is organized by Port Arthur Rotary, Fort William Rotary, Lakehead Rotary, and Rotaract, with this year’s presenting sponsor Goldcorps.
Even though the windchill made it feel closer to minus 20, that wasn’t going to stop thousands of people from lining the parade route to take in the more than 40 floats this year from various businesses and community organizations as they travelled down Memorial Avenue from Superstore to the Thunder Bay Community Auditorium on Saturday.
“Of course the highlight for us all is seeing Santa and Mrs. Claus at the conclusion of the parade in the final float,” Philp said.
And while Santa is always the highlight, for the kids all decked out in snowpants, mittens, toques, and scarves, a lot of the excitement came from the treats being handed out.
“I like that we get lots of candy,” said six-year-old Carter.
And maybe Santa isn’t the star of the show anymore after all.
“I really like the Grinch floats,” said Carter’s seven-year-old sister, Hendrix.
For six-year-old Tyler Watts, the best part was also getting pockets and pockets full of candy from people handing out candy-canes and treats along the way. And the Grinch once against stood out as a favourite.
“I liked the Grinch,” Tyler said.
For Tyler’s dad, Darren, the parade is something he and Tyler make a point of attending every year, cold weather or not.
“I think it’s just good to get out and kickoff the season,” he said. “I just like coming out. I think it’s fun. And we have the Parade of Lights one coming up. We try to make a point of coming out every year. It’s nice, it’s sunny. Just no complaints.”
“I think for a lot of people it’s kind of the kick off to the holiday season and it is the kick off for Santa and Mrs. Claus to start appearing in the local malls,” Philp said. “It’s that milestone event. We are clear of Halloween, we are five, six weeks out from Christmas time, so it starts getting people in the holiday spirit and this year we have the snow to go along with it.”
