Spencer’s first Holiday Caravan parade in decades a success
Published 12:05 am Saturday, November 30, 2024
One of the Jeeps in the Holiday Caravan parade in Spencer.
A group of Jeeps decorated for Christmas participated in the first Spencer Holiday Caravan parade in decades.
Southern Style Cloggers performed on the float during the Holiday Caravan parade.
The Spencer Moose Lodge float in the Holiday Caravan in Spencer.
Santa Clause himself closed out the parade in Spencer.
Cathy Griffin of Century 21 created a beautiful float for the Holiday Caravan parade.
Oasis Salon and Spa had a phenomenal float in the Holiday Caravan parade.
The North Rowan High School marching band led the way for Santa and Mrs. Clause who brought up the finale of the parade in a Radio Flyer wagon.
SPENCER – For the first time in about 65 years, Spencer again hosted its own holiday parade the night before Thanksgiving.
The parade was to step off from North Rowan High School at 6:30 p.m., turn left off Jefferson onto Salisbury Avenue and travel down that main thoroughfare, between town hall and the Transportation Museum.
By 5:45 p.m. there were people lined up all the way down Salisbury Avenue, and they’d brought chairs and blankets so they could enjoy the event in comfort.
In addition, several food trucks were set up at the high school and along the route so parade goers could grab a bite, along with area restaurants that stayed open with special parade offerings.
The Spencer Police Department led the opening, followed by the parade committee co-chairs, Heather Resino and Lynn Purvis, carrying the parade banner.
There were initially 53 entries, but by the night of the parade, there were more than 60. The night sky cooled off as the parade got underway, but the lights on the trucks, Jeeps and floats that came by lit up the darkness as those along the roadside cheered, whooped and hollered, sometimes calling out the names of someone they knew.
The committee had only three months to plan the parade this year, and all along, their goal was to make it a parade that captured the personality of Spencer, a small, tightly-knit community with a hometown feel.
“We did it,” Resino said when the parade was over, saying she had tears in her eyes when she and Purvis, her mother, stepped off on the route. Acknowledging the time limit presented something of a challenge this year, both women say they “cannot wait to see what we accomplish next year.”
Photos are a collection of submitted photos and pictures from Elisabeth Strillacci, Salisbury Post
