Optimist Club Christmas Parade Saturday
November 25, 2015
By Peggy Kelly
Santa Paula News
You might have to bundle up just a tad when a breath of the North Pole sweeps through Santa Paula — no doubt courtesy of Santa Claus — for Saturday’s 67th Annual Optimist Club Christmas Parade.
The November 28 celebration of all things holiday will step out from 7th Street onto East Main Street at 10 a.m.
Gabriella “Gabie” Araiza Reeves, matriarch of the La Cabana Restaurant is the Grand Marshal of this year’s parade themed “A Christmas Dinner” a fitting tribute to the holiday and the eatery. Gabie will be accompanied by family members and followed by a flatbed truck holding elves that for generations have worked at La Cabana, now celebrating its 40th anniversary.
The weather forecast for Saturday is a seasonably cold 57 degrees, a plunge in the temperature compared to last weekend’s high heat.
But the nippy weather will give the thousands of parade watchers drawn to Santa Paula for the event the chance to keep warm by cheering and clapping even more than usual.
Said Christmas Parade Chairman Ron Merson, “I think our community loves our parades, as shown by the participation at the Labor Day Parade, Halloween Parade, and now the Christmas Parade. I love our small town and all that goes with it.”
The motto of the Optimist Club is “Do what’s best for the kids!” and the local group goes above and beyond in their support of activities and programs that benefit youth.
Bringing Santa Claus to town — Old St. Nick is always busy but manages to hop a ride through Santa Paula on a vintage fire engine to the delight of all — also comes with a cost to stage the parade, the oldest such procession in Ventura County.
People throughout Ventura County and beyond attend the parade, which is taped and shown on KADYTV.com (the city also suspended broadcasting the parade on countywide Time Warner Cable) rain or shine.
The annual procession features veterans, equestrians, elected officials, motorcycle riders, schools, marching bands, car clubs of all kinds, churches, service clubs and organizations, businesses, youth groups and kids’ sports teams, dancers, singers, scouts, police, fire and more, marching, riding in convertibles or on floats, all dressed for the holidays and bringing a strong touch of goodwill and peace to all to the city’s historic Downtown.
A Sweepstakes Award for Best Use of Theme will be given as well as 1st and 2nd Place ribbons for Novelty-Youth, Novelty-Adult, Auto and Equestrian entries.
According to the parade application online at the city website, “As you may remember, due to the economic situation, the City of Santa Paula is requiring us to pay fees for the services that they provide during the parade. We have worked with the City to reduce these fees as much as possible, but some fees will still have to be paid.
“These fees are very high compared to our annual budget for special projects in the community, and the cost of the Christmas Parade will reduce the amount of funds we have available for other projects.
“In addition, we have lost our largest fund raising activity, the Pumpkin Patch,” sponsored by the Santa Paula Rotary, which was unable to stage the event at Faulkner Farm due to a dispute with the University of California Hanson Trust, which now owns the landmark property.
The Optimist Club had directed parking at the annual Pumpkin Patch, which will resume next year at a new location.
Donations for the parade are always needed and sponsors receive special recognition: send donation checks made out to Santa Paula Optimist Club, PO Box 507, Santa Paula, CA 93061. Please put Christmas Parade on the memo line.
For more information, call Merson, 805-525-9439, or email: santapaulaparades@hotmail.com
