dvaughan@heraldsun.com; 419-6563
DURHAM -- Marching bands and fire trucks. Can't have a parade without them. The annual Parkwood Holiday Parade, held Sunday on Revere Road, delivered both in full.
Hillside, Southern and Jordan high schools' marching bands all, well, marched down the residential road on the cold, sunny day with just a few patches of snow yet to melt in nearby yards. Parade watchers bundled for the brisk air in hats, scarves, puffy coats and blankets. Kids sat on the curb. Dogs strained on leashes.
Hillside High School band moms Teresa Davis, Marilyn Huger and Lori Sherman-Lopez set their chairs up on the side of the road, awaiting that proud moment when they spotted their children coming down the street.
Davis' daughter, Canisha Young, does flags. Huger's daughter, Mariel Huger, is a dancer. Sherman-Lopez's son, Joaquin Lopez, plays the cymbals.
Davis and Huger also braved the cold -- and snow -- on Saturday when their children marched in the mini parade of the Durham Holiday Fun Fest. Joaquin was busy taking his SATs.
Huger said she thinks the Parkwood parade, while smaller than the old city parade, is more family-oriented. "All the families come out," she said.
"I'm a band junkie. Wherever the band is, we are," said Sherman-Lopez, and the other parents agreed.
"Next weekend, we'll be in Winston-Salem," said Huger, when the band joins the Hillside football team at the state championship. "It's wonderful."
The band is a number one team, too, winning the state title at a competition Oct. 31 at N.C. Central University.
Huger was an NCCU student and flag girl in the marching band when Xavier Cason was director. Cason has been band director at Hillside for 25 years now. The band moms all think Cason is great. Even though band practice starts at 6 a.m.
Davis and Huger are both Hillside alumni. Huger said when she sees her daughter in the parade, it brings back her own memories and she feels like she's in the parade, too. Sometimes they are, walking with the band.
"We holler just like it's the first time seeing them," Davis said. "We encourage all of them."
Also in the parade were the Durham County Sheriff's Office, a fire truck, ambulance, Grateful Dads band, County Commissioner Becky Heron, classic cars, Smokey Bear, a fire truck, Girl Scout and Boy Scout troops, El Centro Hispano, jump ropers, a fire truck, Christus Victor Lutheran Church, a patriotic tractor, Baha'is, the Philip Randolph Institute, more fire trucks and others.
We're talking about more than the average number of fire trucks you see in a parade -- and shiny red, with festive wreaths decorating the front grill. The Parkwood Association, which sponsors the parade, boasted that 15 trucks were expected to participate. The grand marshals this year were several of the original firefighters, rescue personnel and staff from the Parkwood Volunteer Fire Department.
When Santa and Mrs. Claus rounded out the parade, they arrived riding on -- what else? -- a fire truck.
The parade turned the corner onto Seaton Road and ended at the fire department. Bailey Quevedo, a member of Girl Scout Troop 197, finished her parade duty and headed back to watch the rest. It was the first time she had been in a parade.
"It was actually really great, saying hi and waving," she said.
Drake LaDue, who serves on the Parkwood Homeowners Association Board, marched for the ninth year in a row with Champion Tae Kwon Do Academy.
"It's great for the community and the kids," he said. "At first everyone's really cold, but it brings out the spirit of the holidays and people enjoy it."
Southern High School kept in line even after they finished playing and marching. B.J. Satterwhite, a sophomore trumpet player, said the parade was fun, and they worked out any difficulties along the way. He was glad to be part of it.
"I love that crowd feeling," he said.
