Santa Claus parade was the best ever!

The streets in downtown Whitecourt were filled with smiling faces, holiday greetings, Christmas lights, and the sounds of the season on Friday, December 6 as the Whitecourt & District Chamber of Commerce held its annual Santa Claus Parade. Thanks to a higher number of eager participants, the Chamber needed to extend the route in order to accommodate the longer string of floats. Onlookers could be heard joking that there were more people in the parade than on the streets.

They were kidding, of course, as there were thousands of Whitecourtians lined up along the route to take in the sights. One particularly busy area of the route was by 7/11. The parade route usually starts at Rotary Park and heads up along 51 Street before turning left at the four-way stop and heading down 50 Avenue. This year, however, the route was altered and the floats turned right onto 52 Street and passed the entrance of Millar Western before reaching the four-way stop.

This change meant that even more spectators could line up from the old bowling alley parking lot all the way through the intersection and down Anniversary Square on both sides of the road. To say that it was packed would be a gross understatement! There were so many spectators that the six hot chocolate stands that were strategically placed all around the route ran out of delicious cocoa.

Thankfully, the chillier weather didn’t hinder participation. Shouts of “Merry Christmas” and “Happy Holidays” could be heard as each float passed by. Big waves and big, bright smiles could be seen on faces far and wide. Children eagerly waited for candies from happy elves who walked alongside the floats, and high fives could be seen between special characters walking the route such as Bertie Beaver, the Gingerbread Man, Sparky the Fire Dog, and the two Wolverines mascots, Bags and Slash.

Music was pumping from several floats which had people on the sidewalks dancing and singing along partially to stay warm but, mostly, because the Christmas magic was contagious. Comments on social media following the parade were full of praise for the Chamber and businesses that took part saying that it was the best parade ever. One gentleman even stated that in his many years in Whitecourt, he had never seen such a huge parade.

The float winners of this year’s parade were OK Tire for Best Retailer Float, New Venture Safety for Best Industrial Float, and the Rotary Club of Whitecourt for the Best Non-Profit Float. The Chamber also gave an honourable mention to Pembina Pipeline for its “The Pipe is Full” float which got a lot of laughs and thumbs up from the crowd. Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all!