Anna and Elsa, two characters from the popular Disney movie “Frozen,” ride in
the 2014 Hammond Christmas Parade. Elsa used her magic to rain snow down on the
city of Hammond on last Friday night as the parade made its way around campus
and through downtown. The Lion’s Roar / Sara Patrick
Christmas spirit filled the hearts of those who attended the 56th installment of the annual Hammond Christmas Parade. This year’s theme was “It’s a beautiful night in the city of Hammond.”
This year’s parade was last Friday, Dec. 5. The parade was filmed by Florida Parishes Television. Groups and organizations joined in to help the Hammond Rotary Club put on the parade, which was sponsored by the Hammond Downtown Development District Authority. Daryl Ferrara of the Hammond Rotary Club described what the organization had in mind for this year’s parade.
“We were hoping to provide a fun-filled family atmosphere to the Hammond Community,” said Ferrara.
Mayson Foster served as this year’s grand marshal. Foster served as the mayor of Hammond between 2003-2014.
“It was an honor for me to serve the citizens of our great city for the past twelve years. As I rode along in the parade, I was astounded by the number of people that yelled ‘Thank you, Mayor Foster.’ It is great that the people appreciate the service that our public officials give to their communities,” said Foster. “This was the largest crowd that I have ever seen for any event in Hammond. The weather was perfect and the parade-goers were well behaved.”
Both students and community members got involved in the preparation of the parade.
“There are six bands participating from Southeastern so we are really excited about that,” said Terry Lynn Smith of the Hammond DDD. “There are a lot of Southeastern students that come out, and it is great to have them out there.”
This year marked the first time the Hammond DDD has sponsored the parade, despite having participated in the parade for several years.
Participants in the parade were judged in one of four categories: automobiles, commercial floats, non-commercial floats and walking groups. Each category featured first, second and third place awards for those who participated.
First place in the automobile category went to Mgm Mini Storage and U-Haul. Taking first place in the commercial floats was Star Equipment. Chic-fil-A was close behind in second place. Winning the non-commercial category was the Rotary Club of Hammond. Second place awards in the category went to the Amite Oyster Festival. Lastly, the top walking group of the parade as chosen by the judges was Sweet Home Missionary Baptist Church. Two dance academies followed behind the church in the ranking. Lemoine Academy of Dance and Dance Revolutions placed second and third, respectively.
The ultimate goal set forth by whoever sponsors the parade tends to remain the same.
“It seems like a great way to get Hammond ready for the Christmas season,” said Smith.
Despite the warm wintery night, the spirit of Christmas was enjoyed by attendees.
“The parade got me in the Christmas mood even though the weather feeling so takes a little bit of it away,” said Reese Furrow, marketing major. “It was my first time to make it out for the Hammond parade. It was nice way to ring in the season.”
For more information on events put on by the Hammond DDD, visit their website at dddhammond.com. News and information about the Hammond Rotary club can be found on hammondrotary.com.