In less than 48 hours, Holyoke, Massachusetts, will be flooded with green. The western Mass. city’s annual St. Patrick’s Day Parade is once again expected to bring thousands to the Paper City Sunday.
Plenty of it will be playing in the Paper City Sunday, just as it could be heard in Holyoke’s council chambers earlier in the week.
Organizers say as many as 20,000 marchers, 400,000 spectators and as many as 70 parade floats and bands are part of the package.
St. Patricks’ Committee of Holyoke member and Parade President Jim Wildman addressed the council Tuesday.
“It's a great tradition. I don't know how many people remember, but six years ago, our world changed. We were told … that there was no parade happening, there was no road race happening, and I remember sitting right out there and watching this with our president at the time, and it was very, very emotional …” he recalled, describing 2020’s pandemic-related cancellation. “But, we've come back bigger, bigger, better, stronger, and I'm looking forward to marching down the road... and having a great day.”
A “sensory street” will be part of the 73rd annual parade – it will feature a sensory-sensitive stretch of Appleton Street, between Walnut and High streets.
That’s on top of the usual parade security and road blocks, says Police Chief Brian Keenan, what with over 200 uniformed officers and members of the Hampden County Sheriff’s Office on hand.
“It's really the biggest [single-day] event in the region for the entire year and it's an honor for Holyoke to host it,” Keenan told WAMC in a phone interview. “It's great to have such a wonderful event that everybody comes to, and it shows that there's a lot of pride and tradition in Western Massachusetts.”
This year’s parade steps off at 11:10 a.m. from its regular spot near 2200 Northampton Street.
The 49th annual Holyoke St. Patrick's Road Race 10k will be off and running a day beforehand.
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Some audio for this story was provided by Holyoke Media.
