Quote:
Originally Posted by Bogie Shooter
With 85,000+ people in TV, has any parade attracted more than 10%.
Is the minority of people now wringing their hands for the majority who, apparantly won't miss the parades?
Didn't the same thing happen when the Christmas parade was no longer held at the square and now is at the Polo Grounds? And it has been a success since.
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The polo grounds are beautiful......I can understand why it's been a success there.
From our own experience, most people go to parades with young children; we started ours off from about age 2 and took them to every single town parade in our Vermont town.........of which there are many.
Once they were young teenagers, we were SO HAPPY that we could just let them walk down into town with their friends......to the parades.
Been there, done that......for years and years.
Then we began again with the new baby grandchildren.....from crawling infant stage on........again, glad when everyone decided it was TOO HOT TO SIT THROUGH THOSE THREE HOUR PARADES, having to put our chairs out early on the sidewalks (5 a.m. for noon parade; arriving at 11 a.m., winding down at 3 p.m.)
Parades are for young families and children. I can't even imagine trying to get a good spot at the squares.......at our age.
Up here the FIREMEN (all volunteers) sponsor the big summertime parade and other groups like the VFW sponsor the smaller parades.
The firemen get donations from us and other townspeople by selling ads in their parade newspaper.........since the parade honors the firemen, those past and present, it works out great. We have participants from Massachusetts, New York State and all over Vermont........even Connecticut. We used to have a drum and bugle contest the evening of the parade ....but that ended many years ago. Everyone went to that as well.
Our high school marched along with all the out of state bands..........they made floats, all the various town groups made floats........it was all "volunteer" sort of. Everyone and their uncle marched, including the various scouting groups, the guys riding the little "cars" with the "fez" hats on........it takes planning, but the community itself can do it.
Most towns have parades and somehow the citizens raise the money to sponsor them............we have parades for every season of the year.
If the people of TV want them, they will find a way and a place.