Washburn brings back Christmas parade after six years
About 30 entries were in this year’s Washburn Christmas parade. This was the first parade since 2011 for the small town. Pictured above is Johnnie Hilery Construction’s parade entry.
December 6, 2017
Charlea Estes-Jones
For the first time in six years, Washburn was full of Christmas cheer with a parade winding through town. Cheryl Floyd, a Washburn Chamber of Commerce member, spearheaded the event, hoping to bring a sense of community and fun.
This year was the first Christmas parade in Washburn since 2011. Floyd said she was pleasantly surprised with the response they received about the event with around 30 entries this year.
She said, “I felt that Washburn deserves to have a parade going through again. The community needed something for Washburn. We have a great band and everything else, but we needed something more.”
Floyd pitched the idea to the Washburn Chamber of Commerce and offered to organize it. She said they had people signing up until the morning of the parade, which was Saturday, December 2, at 10 a.m.
“There were five or six entries that came in Thursday or Friday last week. We even had one or two people come in on Saturday asking if they could be in, as well. I believe because of advertising, a lot more people came and realized we were having one and wanting to be in it,” Floyd said. She said she thinks it’ll grow next year with more people being aware of the event.
“We plan to do it again next year. To me, I don’t have a commercial business or anything like that, but what I want to see is to see Washburn grow more and have people have something to look forward to. We want people in the community to have things to do in town. That’s why I joined the Chamber,” she said. Floyd said she has been with the Chamber about a year and a half.
Floyd continued, “I’m a stay at home mom, and I wanted my kids to have something to look forward to, as well.”
Floyd said that under the new Washburn Chamber of Commerce president, the group hopes to host more events and be more active in the community. She said a car show is planned for next year. Matt Oxford is the president of the group.
Community reaction was a lot of excitement for the re-vamped parade. “Most of the response was really positive. A lot of people said they are looking forward to next year’s parade. We’d like to do more, but we have to go from there,” Floyd stated.
She added, “It’s been a lot better than what I expected. It was perfect.”
Winners of the Washburn parade received trophies. This year’s winners were:
• Commercial: Barry Electric
• Non-Commercial: Cassville Cruisers
• Single-Unit Vehicles: Benny’s Automotive
• Marching Unit: Southwest Marching Band
• Horse-Drawn Unit: Piper Ginn on a pony
• Other: Cooper Hendrix.
Charlea Estes-Jones
For the first time in six years, Washburn was full of Christmas cheer with a parade winding through town. Cheryl Floyd, a Washburn Chamber of Commerce member, spearheaded the event, hoping to bring a sense of community and fun.
This year was the first Christmas parade in Washburn since 2011. Floyd said she was pleasantly surprised with the response they received about the event with around 30 entries this year.
She said, “I felt that Washburn deserves to have a parade going through again. The community needed something for Washburn. We have a great band and everything else, but we needed something more.”
Floyd pitched the idea to the Washburn Chamber of Commerce and offered to organize it. She said they had people signing up until the morning of the parade, which was Saturday, December 2, at 10 a.m.
“There were five or six entries that came in Thursday or Friday last week. We even had one or two people come in on Saturday asking if they could be in, as well. I believe because of advertising, a lot more people came and realized we were having one and wanting to be in it,” Floyd said. She said she thinks it’ll grow next year with more people being aware of the event.
“We plan to do it again next year. To me, I don’t have a commercial business or anything like that, but what I want to see is to see Washburn grow more and have people have something to look forward to. We want people in the community to have things to do in town. That’s why I joined the Chamber,” she said. Floyd said she has been with the Chamber about a year and a half.
Floyd continued, “I’m a stay at home mom, and I wanted my kids to have something to look forward to, as well.”
Floyd said that under the new Washburn Chamber of Commerce president, the group hopes to host more events and be more active in the community. She said a car show is planned for next year. Matt Oxford is the president of the group.
Community reaction was a lot of excitement for the re-vamped parade. “Most of the response was really positive. A lot of people said they are looking forward to next year’s parade. We’d like to do more, but we have to go from there,” Floyd stated.
She added, “It’s been a lot better than what I expected. It was perfect.”
Winners of the Washburn parade received trophies. This year’s winners were:
• Commercial: Barry Electric
• Non-Commercial: Cassville Cruisers
• Single-Unit Vehicles: Benny’s Automotive
• Marching Unit: Southwest Marching Band
• Horse-Drawn Unit: Piper Ginn on a pony
• Other: Cooper Hendrix.