The Owensboro-Daviess County Christmas Parade returns at 4:30 p.m. this Saturday. Here’s everything you need to know — from our live stream complete with commentators, to the parade route and full lineup, to how to bring and deliver letters to Santa, and more.
Live stream
The entire parade will be broadcast live on the Owensboro Times Facebook Page and website. The stream will begin just before the parade kicks off at 4:30 p.m.
Commentators include WBKR radio personality Chad Benefield and longtime parade committee member Jane Head.
Parade route
The entire parade will be held on 2nd Street, so viewers can pick a spot on either sidewalk to catch all the action. The parade begins at Pearl Street and will head west before ending at Locust Street.
Please note that no fire pits or outside heating sources are allowed along the parade route. This is also a non-smoking, family-friendly event.
Grand marshal
Daviess County Attorney Claud Porter will be this year’s grand marshal. He is retiring this year after serving in the County Attorney’s office for 38 years, 16 of those years as the elected County Attorney.
Porter has been a member of the Kentucky Bar Association for 40 years; helped implement many programs including Mental Health Court, Juvenile Drug Court, and the Domestic Violence Prevention Program; taught economics and business law at Brescia University, Kentucky Wesleyan University, and Owensboro Community & Technical College; and has served on several community boards.
Porter is married to Karen Miller Porter. He has a daughter and son-in-law, Rachel and Matt Adams, in Nashville, along with their two children Porter and Lila. He also has a son, David Porter, who lives in Louisville. His family includes a bonus daughter Siebe and Brandon Heath, in Nashville, with their daughters Palmer and Ellison, and a bonus son K.C. Daniel and his two girls Mya and Chloe in Florida.
Honorary grand marshal
Dr. H. Andrew Ward will be the honorary grand marshal. Ward graduated from Brescia University in 1962 before he entered the officer training program for the United States Air Force. After serving his active duty, Ward returned to Owensboro where he obtained a teaching position at Foust Junior High and later at Thomas Jefferson High School in Louisville.
Ward enrolled in the Indiana University College of Optometry in 1970 and graduated 1973. He then returned to his hometown of Owensboro where he started his family optometry practice with his wife Jeannette. Additionally, he joined the United States Air Force Reserves where he served as Liaison Officer to the United States Air Force Academy and Air Force ROTC. He proudly served in this capacity until his retirement from the Air Force Reserves with the rank of Lieutenant Colonel.
Parade starters
Lila and Ollie Adams will serve as official parade starters. Along with Kirk Kirkpatrick, they will kick-off the parade at 4:30 p.m. at the corner of 2nd and Pearl Street.
Lila and Ollie are the youngest children of Murray and Tricia Adams, and grandchildren of Dr. H. Andrew and Jeanette Ward.
Lila is a 2nd-grader at Owensboro Catholic K-3 campus. She enjoys figure skating, dance, softball, soccer and girl scouts. She will be appearing as an extra in this year’s Owensboro Dance Theatre production of The Nutcracker. Ollie is a kindergarten student at Owensboro Catholic K-3 campus. He enjoys playing hockey with the Owensboro PuckHogs, as well as participating in baseball, soccer and boy scouts.
Letters to Santa
Did you know you can bring your letters to Santa at the Christmas parade? Santa’s helpers collect hundreds of letters from the kids and delivers them to the jolly man himself. You can download a Letter to Santa here or write your own.
Letters will be collected by Owensboro Health volunteers at the end of the parade. OH is serving as the sponsor for the Santa float.
Parade lineup
The list below details the tentative order that floats will appear. Those assigned the number “0” will be assigned a spot on parade day, somewhere in the middle of the lineup. Participants and the order are subject to change.
0 – Owensboro Ghostbusters
0 – Owensboro Shriners
0 – Payne’s Roofing
1 – Owensboro Police Department
2 – Daviess County Sheriff’s Department
3 – Daviess County Detention Center
4 – Kentucky State Police
5 – Owensboro Fire Department
6 – Daviess County Fire Department
7 – Moseleyville Fire Department
8 – Airport-Sorgho Fire Department
9 – Owensboro-Daviess County Christmas Parade Banner
10 – Owensboro High School Color Guard and JROTC
11 – Grand Marshal Banner
12 – Grand Marshal — Claud Porter
13 – Miracle Sister and Flower Sister — Costumed Characters
14 – Wendell Foster
15 – Paws 4 Jonah
16 – Honorary Grand Marshal Banner
17 – Honorary Grand Marshal — Dr. H. Andrew Ward
18 – Owensboro Catholic Marching Aces
19 – Daviess County Lions Club Queens
20 – Emily Calvert — National Extraordinary Miss Jr. Teen 2022
21 – Choniece Stevenson
22 – A Royal Corgi Christmas
23 – Ice Queen and Ice Princess — Costumed Characters
24 – Wesleyan Medical Complex
25 – Tally’s Towing & Recovery
26 – Matthew 25
27 – St. Vincent de Paul Thrift Store
28 – Special Guest Banner — Brayden Locher, Soap Box Derby
29 – Soapbox Derby
30 – Daviess County Animal Care and Control
31 – Spay A Stray
32 – Claypool Sleigh
33 – Daviess County High School JROTC
34 – WBKR
35 – Island Princess, Tower Princess, and Glass Slipper Princess — Costumed Characters
36 – Borrowed Hearts Owensboro
37 – Westerfield Electric Banner
38 – Downtown Trolley
39 – Firehouse Moving Company in a Winter Wonderland
40 – Standard Sales Company
41 – Saving Paws Animal Rescue of KY
42 – The Dapper Dog
43 – RiverPark Center
44 – Gold Level Sponsor — Unifirst Banner
45 – Cedarhurst of Owensboro
46 – Owensboro High School Marching Band
47 – Western Kentucky Saber Guild
48 – Rose Princess and Mermaid Princess
49 – WKWC 90.3
50 – Owensboro Western Baseball/8-, 9-, & 10-Year-Old 2022 West Kentucky Cal Ripken State Champions
51 – Grime Stoppers
52 – Lee Best Memorial Foundation Inc.
53 – Independence Bank
54 – Owensboro Post 9 American Legion Baseball
55 – Spider Dude and Fashion Doll
56 – Girl Scout Troop 1592
57 – Living Christmas Story
58 – 14 First Alert Interceptor
59 – Kentucky Lightning 9u
60 – Nix Companies Truck & Trailer
61 – Owensboro Community and Technical College
62 – Gold Level Sponsor — Blue Line Entertainment Banner
63 – Public Works
64 – Sweetwater Polar Express
65 – M.S.C
66 – Kentucky Rebels Fastpitch Softball Team
67 – Ryan’s Roll-Off Dumpsters
68 – OCHS and DCHS Habitat For Humanity Club
69 – Apollo Air Force JROTC
70 – The Event Kode
71 – Owensboro Public Schools Transportation
72 – Building Stronger Families
73 – Apollo High School Marching Band
74 – Daviess County Public Schools
75 – Here Comes Santa Banner
76 – Owensboro Health Santa Float Sponsor Banner
77 – SANTA
