Excited children and bundled up families wouldn’t let the chilly temperatures stop them from enjoying the Portage Parks and Recreation Department's annual Christmas Parade and Tree Lighting on Saturday. Families gathered to watch the parade which featured floats, fire trucks, a horse drawn carriage along with Santa and Mrs. Claus before counting down the Tree Lighting together at Gilbert Park.
“This is our 4th annual Park Lighting,” said Portage Parks Marketing and Development Director, Lori Wilkie. “In lining it up we find a nonprofit to sell cookies and cocoa to try and help them raise funds. Randy and Robin Wilkinson were our Santa and Mrs. Claus. We had Allen’s Landscaping put the lights up for us this year at Gilbert Park and at dusk we light up the park.”
“Today is our Portage Kickoff to Christmas as I like to call it because we always schedule and work with Toy’s For Tots and their Chili Luncheon, and then we have the parade and park lighting after that,” Wilkie said. “It’s all just one big shebang!”
Amanda Lakie from the Mayor’s office was at Willowcreek Middle Sschool coordinating and lining up all the floats, fire trucks, and organizations marching in the parade.
“We put on the Christmas Parade every year,” said Amanda Lakie. “It’s just a celebration and the kids got the chance to get free pictures with Santa. Ruth Jones was the one in the carriage this year. She has been on the park board for many years and has really done a lot for the city so she was kind of our leader today.”
Marching in this year’s parade and promoting their community health centers was Denise Carpenter from NorthShore Health Centers.
“We like being apart of things happening in the community,” Carpenter said. “We want to be your home for medical needs and community health. We handed out some information about our ‘Cookies With Santa’ events coming up on the 8th and the 15th, and we’re giving the kids candy canes and just spreading good cheer. There was around twenty NorthShore people marching in the parade. We were just really excited to be here with Santa and to be a part of the parade and all the great things going on in Portage!”
Also there with her reindeer-clad dog Darcy was Mary Hewitt, a Portage resident, who loves a chance to come out and celebrate with the community.
“This is our first year at the Christmas Parade and Tree Lighting,” Hewitt said. “Darcy is six years old and loves the attention. She was dressed as a spider at this year's ‘Trunk or Treat’. We go to Rittenhouse, to the alzheimer's wing, where she does agility and she’s the right size for the residents to reach out and pet her. Pretty soon she’s the center of attention and she really enjoys it.”
To find out about all the great things happening with the Portage Parks and Recreation Department, go to: http://www.inportageparks.com/