Though the Owensboro-Daviess County Christmas Parade’s board of directors said there’s still a lot of unknowns regarding this year’s event, Chairman Kenny Williams said his team of volunteers is still striving to create a successful parade experience this November.
A Wednesday article published by Owensboro Times — with input from a board member — addressed the possibility of this year’s Christmas parade being cancelled, as well as hardships the board has and could continue to face in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.
After receiving multiple concerned calls and messages from the community, the parade’s board of directors published a Facebook post that expressed their desire to hold a parade in 2020, and that while the board had not met in person over the last several months, they had been in communication via text and phone calls to discuss the upcoming parade.
Their Facebook post raised the eyebrows of some citizens. At least one person then claimed Owensboro Times provided false information by saying the parade was cancelled — and other comments on the OT article assumed the event was cancelled. However, OT never said the event was cancelled, instead only mentioning there would be tough obstacles to overcome.
Additionally, Evansville cancelled their Christmas parade the day before, something Williams thought may have added to the confusion.
Williams said the board never had any issues with the OT article and there was no inaccurate information regarding whether or not the event would still be held. He said their Facebook post was intended to make sure the community knew the parade hadn’t yet been cancelled and the board was still hoping for the best.
The board published another Facebook post Thursday to address the confusion and negative comments.
Williams said they are trying to stay positive in their planning.
“We are parade geeks. We’re all volunteers, and we have no funding,” Williams said. “All expenses are paid through our wonderful sponsors and the entry fees going toward the parade each year too. That’s why it’s supposed to be exciting for the community.”
As the largest Christmas parade in the Commonwealth, Owensboro’s 84th annual event is something Williams and his team are very excited about. The amount of work that goes into making the parade happen is reflective of the volunteers’ commitment to spreading joy and positive memories for the community, he said.
“We have to work with [the state] to shut down streets. We have to get an insurance policy in case anything happens. Those can run between $1,100 and $1,300. We have a legacy that we take very seriously,” he said.
The theme for this year’s parade — “We’re Dreaming of a White Christmas” — was decided in January during a board meeting. That was the last official meeting they had due to COVID-19, Williams said, but board members have been in discussions regarding pandemic and what it could mean for this year’s parade.
In June, the board began virtually discussing the outcomes for the parade after things started closing down. Once the reopenings began, the board felt better about the Christmas parade being able to continue, Williams said.
“We said, ‘We’re looking at six months down the road,’” he said. “Never did it cross our minds that we’d cancel.”
But in July, when the number of cases started to increase again and public events continued to be cancelled months in advance, Williams said the board had to ask themselves, “What’s going to happen with the parade?”
Whether the City of Owensboro will issue a permit to the board is one of the concerns, along with whether or not an insurance policy will be permitted. Two years ago the board had to expand their insurance clause to cover possible terrorism threats, which Williams said could possibly go hand-in-hand with the COVID-19 pandemic.
He said officials aren’t willing to have those conversations with the board right now, but he’s hoping for more clear-cut answers in August.
“It’s been brought up, but we do the parade out of love,” he said. “No matter what your beliefs are or where you come from, there’s something magical about seeing Santa Claus. It’s worth it, the amount of money we have to put together.”
Williams added that he doesn’t quite know what this year’s parade will look like, but that the board will get an early start on procuring the necessary people and equipment to live stream the event for the public.
If the permit and insurance policy requests are denied, then for the first time in 84 years, the parade will not be able to be held.
“If we can’t have the parade then we will do something else,” Williams. “I don’t know what it’s going to look like yet, but it’s going to happen.”
