It may have rained, but thousands of spectators and marchers still made their annual rounds in Holyoke Sunday, coming out for one of the Northeast’s biggest St. Patrick’s Day parades.
Whether it was the mummer’s music, Holyoke Caledonian Pipe Band or about 30 floats rolling into downtown, thousands of spectators braved the rain to take it all in.
Cloudy conditions gave way to rain about an hour into the festivities. It was enough to dampen clothes, but not dampen spirits, especially for the two dozen Hartford-area drummers and dancers making up the “Hartford's Proud Drill Drum and Dance Corp.”
— James Paleologopoulos (@WAMC_J_Paleo) March 22, 2026
“This is a youth program that's out of Hartford that takes high-risk kids off the streets and gives [them] some elevation … gives them something positive, to look forward to,” explains co-founder Duffy Stark. “… at the age of 5-18, get them ready for college, and they come back and help the rest. My motto is ‘each one, teach one.’”
The group was one of the parade’s leaders, marching behind the usual bagpipes for just over 2.5 miles. 18-year-old Alyssa Slade tells WAMC she's been with the corp. for 11 years and that it would take more than dreary weather to bring her down.
“It is amazing - I see all of the people, all the energy,” she said, standing in the massive staging area off of Northampton Street. “It might be a little cold, but everybody's bringing in the heat today. I love being here - it's nice.”
Slade’s was one of about three dozen bands on-hand for the 73rd annual parade. It’s considered one of the biggest in the United States. In ideal conditions, organizers say as many 400,000 spectators can fill the Paper City for the occasion.
No estimates for Sunday’s parade attendance have been released as of Monday morning, though final numbers will likely be on the lower-end: some city blocks were far emptier compared to previous years.
Still, for vendors like Jahleel Gabriel of Dev's Mac N Eats, business was good – so was the community spirit.
“It's awesome that they're able to close the streets down and everyone's here to just enjoy this time together,” the assistant manager said, adding that it’s the chicken/mac and cheese stand’s third parade. “To see the amount of people here each time - it's amazing to see that we can all come together at this moment and just enjoy each other's presence and stuff.”
While some stretches towards the parade’s end were sparse, you couldn’t tell at the corner of Northampton and Beech streets. Front lawns were loaded, especially as the region’s Colleen winners rounded the corner.
This year's Grand Colleen: South Hadley's Jadyn Christie. Her parents tell WAMC they couldn't be more proud. Shannon Riley says the Elms College student is no stranger to community service, from time spent assisting South Hadley’s Best Buddies program to hosting students from Japan.
“She didn't start off [saying] ‘I'm going to do this stuff to be a Colleen.’ She's continually done it, so when the [pageant] came up, she was like ‘Oh, well, this fits my bill! Let me try to apply for this and see where it goes,” Riley said.
“To get to be a Colleen, you have to just be an exceptional human being and that is what Jadyn is,” added Messina Riley. “She has volunteerism, she is out there with her community, she's an exceptional student and, beyond everything else, she is just a wonderful human being.”
Pageant winners, jugglers and clowns were among the usual entertainers. Standing tall over all of them was Jay Reilly with Extraordinary Arts, clad in green and stilts that put him several feet above your average 5’9” radio news reporter.
“I've done a lot of parades and I would say St. Patrick's Day parades are special - I think the energy is just different. I really appreciate the whole crowd: everyone's really excited. I don't know if it's the kickoff of the year of all the parades, but for me, I really enjoy that aspect of it,” he said. “I think I thrive off people's energy - you can hear people up ahead, making some noise. For me, that's a big aspect of it - it gets me through these cold days, you know?”
— James Paleologopoulos (@WAMC_J_Paleo) March 22, 2026
The parade packs more than just entertainment, as well. There were plenty of reminders and tributes to the Emerald Isle, as well as the numerous Irish families settling in the region two centuries ago to work the mills and beyond, trying to rise up through toil and labor.
Also trying to rise up – the Holyoke Teachers Association, standing along the route in front of Holyoke High School North Campus. Reminding city officials that bargaining has gone on for around 400 days was HTA President Nick Cream.
“I want people to understand that without the workers, we wouldn't be able to have parades like this, right? The city wouldn't function without teachers, without police officers, without [firefighters], without DPW workers, without city workers - this city wouldn't function,” the union president said while holding a “I Stand With Holyoke Educators sign. “We need to make sure that we're respecting all of our workers here, and we're treating them with dignity and fairness and respect."
As the parade went on, so too did the rain.
As members of the National Association of Letter Carriers said while marching: rain, sleet or snow, the job gets done – parades included.
“It’s Tuesday for us!” yelled a member of Western Mass. Branch 46 on Appleton Street.
— James Paleologopoulos (@WAMC_J_Paleo) March 22, 2026
