Parade-goers may witness historical past Saturday when the annual Downtown Springfield Christmas Parade steps off at 2 p.m. at South Avenue and Elm Street.
This yr’s theme is “Santa Paws is Coming to Town,” and it’ll characteristic what’s believed to be the primary four-legged grand marshal within the parade’s lengthy historical past: Googey the Cat, from BookMarx.
“Obviously the parade has been going on longer than any of us can recount, but to our knowledge, this is the first time we’ve had a four-legged grand marshal,” mentioned Hailey Magnus, communications supervisor for the Downtown Springfield Association.
Googey having fun with a giant 2023
Captain Springfield himself will lead the floats, marching bands and different assorted entries by way of Park Central Square — so long as he can handle all the vacation hubbub.
“Googey is going to be riding, with me holding him in a bubble backpack, in a convertible back seat,” Joshua Arnett, proprietor of BookMarx and Googey, confirmed to the Daily Citizen in a Facebook message, including. “Will it be a disaster? Possibly!”
The excellent news is that Googey’s first follow session went properly.
“We tried out the bubble backpack yesterday and he was chill and just kind of settled into it, so hopefully he remains as relaxed on Saturday, but I’ll have catnip and treats to try to calm him down,” Arnett mentioned.
It’s been a giant yr for the orange cat. He captured greater than 8,000 votes in August to grow to be the eighth Captain Springfield and the primary non-human to win the competition, which is run by the Springfield News-Leader.
“Since then (Googey), and BookMarx owner Josh Arnett, have taken the title seriously, using the promotion to support local animal and literacy-focused nonprofits,” mentioned a Downtown Springfield Association press launch.
Animals and the individuals who love them the main target of parade theme
And that’s not the one animal enjoyable parade-goers should stay up for. Hillcrest High School’s Future Farmers of America are offering the horses to drag Santa Claus and Mrs. Claus’ wagon, whereas the Experience Church plans on having camels as a part of its entry.
“We’ve got more specific animal groups coming, too, like K9s for Camo, Rescue One and Zoomin Groomin,” Magnus mentioned. “We know that people around here love their pets, we just had Googey win the title of Captain Springfield and we’ve got a bunch of great organizations around town that are working for the betterment of animals, so it seemed like a great time to celebrate them.”
Floats, marching bands and extra scheduled to participate
The parade lineup options all of the longtime favorites, together with marching bands from Springfield’s public colleges and several other surrounding communities. They’ll march north on South Avenue earlier than circling the west aspect of Park Central Square and heading east on St. Louis Street to the Springfield Expo Center.
“We’re super excited,” Magnus mentioned. “Of course, we have our favorites coming out, like the Springfield Cardinals. And everyone loves it when the Coca-Cola group goes by and hands out their sodas. We’ve also got some cool, different groups in this year’s parade.”
Pre-parade enjoyable consists of Christmas Market, window competitors
The parade is only one occasion in a busy day downtown Dec. 9. The Christmas Market returns for its third yr on Park Central Square, from midday till the parade ends, with a number of meals and purchasing choices.
“You can get tacos, or if you want something sweet we’ve got the Wonky Waffle,” Magnus mentioned. “There will be people offering hot chocolate and fun beverages. We’ve got Fizz Sips-n-Sweets coming out. And, of course, we’ve got groups like Formed: An Artist Collective and SOAP Refill Station selling all kinds of fun goodies to help stuff stockings this year.”
Parade-goers can even stroll by way of the neighborhood and take a look at the 20-plus businesses taking part within the Team A.N.A. 417 Downtown Springfield Holiday Window Challenge. Dec. 9 is the final day to vote within the competitors. Team A.N.A. 417 is a Springfield nonprofit whose mission is to “inspire patients and their families, educate communities and drive research to help find answers for acoustic neuromas and other benign brain tumors.”
Stick round for Santa, practice rides and horse-drawn carriages
After the parade, Park Central Square will keep busy because the City of Springfield continues its Santa Weekends. From 6-8 p.m., friends can go to Santa and Mrs. Claus within the Santa House beneath the Mayor’s Tree and trip the SGF Holiday Express practice across the within the sq.. Santa Weekends are additionally deliberate Dec. 15-16 and 22-23.
Free horse-drawn carriage rides can even be available after the parade. They’re offered by the Downtown CID.
And, only a brief drive away from the sq., there’s Festival of Lights Free Ice Skating at Jordan Valley Ice Park from 7-8:30 p.m. Skate leases are $3 per pair, or you may carry your individual. All ages are welcome. The Springfield-Greene County Park Board can also be providing free ice skating from 7-8:30 p.m. Dec. 23 and 25.
