By Staff
Washington event accepting ‘same day’ entries
By KEVIN SCOTT CUTLER
Lifestyles &Features Editor
Washington’s traditional Christmas parade will be held Saturday morning and organizers are hoping a misunderstanding regarding registration won’t keep entries away.
A postal mix-up resulted in some applications being returned to sender, so the Washington Kiwanis Club has offered to accept entries until just prior to the start of the parade.
The parade is scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. and will travel — in part — along Main, Market and Second streets. But participants are asked to begin lining up at 8:30 a.m., so those who haven’t preregistered are urged to arrive early.
Churches and other organizations providing proof of their nonprofit status can enter the holiday parade free of charge. For-profit businesses and groups pay a $25 entry fee and horseback riders are charged $5, according to Carter.
But the entry fee doesn’t mean the parade is a windfall for the Kiwanis Club.
Those projects include funding scholarships for college-bound seniors in Beaufort County and providing holiday cheer for foster children in the area.
Organizers are expecting around 10,000 spectators for the parade, a Washington Christmas tradition for generations. The Kiwanis Club assumed leadership of the event several years ago.
Carter complimented the City of Washington for its support of the event.
According to Carter, the parade will feature several familiar faces.
Taking a break from his duties at the North Pole will be Santa Claus, who is expected to ride on the City’s vintage fire truck again this year. Also slated to appear are local elected officials, members of the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary, representatives of civic organizations, marching bands, dancers, church groups, cheerleaders and members of local car clubs.
*For more information about participating in the Washington Christmas parade, contact Carter at (252) 946-0351 or tmcarter@ultrastat.com.
More about the community service provided by the Washington Kiwanis Club will be featured in an upcoming edition of the Daily News.