Downtown Toledo turned into the region’s holiday front porch on Saturday morning as the 39th Annual Blade Holiday Parade stepped off at 10 a.m., bringing giant balloons, marching bands, floats and Santa Claus through the center of the city, The Blade reported.
The parade began at the corner of North Summit Street and Jefferson Avenue, turned onto Jackson Boulevard, made its way to Huron Street and finished down Washington Street, according to the parade’s official route published by The Blade and Toledo.com. This year’s grand marshal was Bay View Yacht Club, The Blade announced.
The grand marshal’s role came with a gift for the crowd: Bay View Yacht Club planned to distribute children’s books along the route, The Ohio Flyover reported in its Saturday edition. The parade lineup, as Toledo.com described it, featured giant balloons, local marching bands, clowns, horses and colorful floats, with Santa Claus closing the celebration.
The Blade said interest in taking part was strong enough that it stopped accepting unit participation requests ahead of parade day because of the overwhelming response. The parade is one of downtown Toledo’s longest-running holiday traditions, returning each November to open the city’s holiday season.
Toledo’s weekend of giving continues on Sunday, when the Margie Barilla Foundation and GainLife host a community celebration at the Gesu Sullivan Center on Parkside Boulevard, with giveaways, resources and a holiday turkey drive for Lucas County families, according to the event’s organizers. The organizers said the celebration is expected to serve more than 400 families.
What happens next for downtown is the rest of the holiday calendar the parade kicks off — and for families who lined Summit Street on Saturday, the season’s first visit with Santa is already in the books. Details in this report are from The Blade, Toledo.com and The Ohio Flyover.
Photo: Chris Rycroft, CC BY