THUNDER BAY - Even though there is no snow left on the ground and the temperatures rose above zero, the people of Thunder Bay got an early taste of the holiday season courtesy of colourful characters and ole Saint Nick himself.
The 29th Annual Rotary Santa Claus Parade made its way through the city on Saturday, bringing holiday cheer to thousands of people lining the route.
“A lot of people look forward to it,” said Clifford Mushquash, president of the Lakehead Rotary Club. “It’s a good family event and it kind of starts the holiday season for a lot of people I think.”
Businesses and organizations entered floats decked out with holiday spirit and travelled the parade route from Superstore down Memorial Avenue and ending at the Thunder Bay Community Auditorium.
"People get really creative, not two floats are the same and its so great to see people interact with the crowd," added Fort William Rotary president, Stephen Margarit.
“We have 50 floats this year, which is up a little bit from last year, but still down a little bit from previous years,” Mushquash added. “We’ve gotten a really good response from organizations and businesses in the city, as well as a lot of sponsorships to help offset the costs to hold the parade.”
This year’s title sponsors included Ontario Power Generation, Boston Pizza, and Bombardier.
One of the floats this year that has been an active participant in the annual parade was the Regional Food Distribution Association.
“For us this is one way that we can celebrate with the rest of the community and also be visible,” said RFDA executive director, Volker Kromm. “We firmly believe in community and this is one way for us to show that. We totally support the community.”
Kromm added that he was happy to see a few more floats preparing to travel the parade route this year and everyone put in a lot of effort with the designs and decorations.
“This is something I do that is very near and dear to me,” he said. “A lot of the people we serve our children and this is all about children today.”
And even though the wind still has a bit of bite to it, this year was still far warmer than last year’s chilly welcome to Santa.
“It’s one of the better weather days in recent memory,” Mushquash said. “Some years it has been very cold, some years it has been rainy and snowy. There could be a little sun today, but we’re not complaining.”
