St. Thomas Optimist Club
The 38th annual St. Thomas Optimist Santa Claus Parade will take over Talbot Street Saturday evening, continuing the kick off to the holiday season in the Railway City.
myFM had the chance to sit down with Optimist Club member Earl Taylor, who gave us the scoop on this year’s event.
The parade will be following the traditional route west down Talbot Street from First Ave to Elgin Street, with Taylor noting the best spots for viewing.
This year’s parade theme is “Christmas at the Circus”, which the almost 80 entries will be trying to following.
Taylor adds that they’re expecting a wide range of creativity for 2024.
Something special this year notes Taylor is the addition of a Honorary Parade Marshall, with St. Thomas Paralympian and goalball star Emma Reinke leading the way.
As her self-titled number one fans, myFM reached out to Reinke to share in the excitement of this honour. She notes that Santa won’t be the only one in a special red suit this Saturday.
As in years past, our local fire departments from St. Thomas and Southwold will be on hand collecting donations in support of Christmas Care. The firefighters will be coming around, so please refrain from entering the roadway stressed Taylor.
He also reminds that the throwing or giving out of candy or other items from parade floats will not be permitted.
Taylor has assured that Santa has confirmed his attendance for Saturday, but an ongoing strike at Canada Post has impacted the annual pick up of Santa letters. Here’s what’s being suggested in the meantime.
But in true St. Thomas fashion, a local organization has stepped up to make sure our youngest residents can have this special holiday memory. The Elgin County Railway Museum has made arrangements to ensure that your “Letters to Santa” get picked up and delivered to the North Pole thanks to their Polar Express team. You can bring your letters to the parade and Santa’s Helpers will collect them.
You are reminded that the parade will go ahead despite any and all weather conditions.
For full details on the 38th annual St. Thomas Optimist Santa Claus Parade, including the complete list of participants, visit optimistsantaclausparade.ca
Written by: K. Freeman
