Despite the frigid temperature, thousands of Brantford and area residents gathered along Dalhousie Street for the 48th annual Santa Claus Parade on Saturday, November 30, 2024.
The parade kicked off at the corner of Stanley and Dalhousie Street before making its way east towards Harmony Square for the Parade After Party.
Children and adults were sure to arrive early, many with chairs and wagons, to solidify their spots along the two-kilometre route so as to not miss the chance to wave to Father Christmas.
Before the parade began, Santa told the Brant Beacon that while he attends many parades, the City of Brantford is one of the highlights of the season.
“This parade is so special,” he said. “Seeing all the floats all decorated with lights and saying hello to all the smiling faces is fantastic, this parade is just one of my absolute favourites.”
While many stayed heavily bundled up in blankets, coats and snowsuits to stay warm, plenty of children took the opportunity to grab a light up souvenir from one of the many vendors walking up and down the road.
As the parade got underway, Harmony Squirrel, accompanied by City Councillors Richard Carpenter, Mandy Samwell, Michael Sullivan, Gino Caputo, Dan McCreary, Greg Martin, and Rose Sicoli, along with Mayor Kevin Davis, all led the way towards their final destination while the floats followed shortly behind.
This year, a variety of about 100 local businesses and organizations came out to show off their festive floats or to walk the route on foot including hockey clubs, football teams, and dance studios.
“Last year we had just over 75 floats, so this year we had quite a bit more. We had a few new entries this year and a lot of people brought all sorts of trucks and some were just on foot, it was just great,” said Dave Carrol, Lead Pastor of Freedom House, the organizers of the Brantford Santa Claus Parade. “This year’s theme was the 150th anniversary of the telephone and every time you set a theme, you never really know if people are going to do it or not do it, but there was a lot of telephone stuff, so I was pretty impressed.”
For many, like Jennifer Middleton, Special Events Supervisor for the City of Brantford, being in the parade is an exciting experience.
“I’ve been doing this for 13 years and never participated in the parade until last year and I loved it so much,” said Middleton. “To see all the kids along the way brings a completely different perspective and for me, even though I’m freezing, it really makes me feel like I’m a kid again.”
As the parade carried on and as Santa Claus approached the end of the route, hundreds of residents followed behind his sleigh to partake in the after party festivities in Harmony Square.
Once down from his sleigh, Santa Claus and Mrs. Claus greeted the many residents and shared the true meaning of Christmas.
“What a magical parade we just had. Seeing all your smiling faces warms my heart and reminds us of the true spirit of the season; togetherness, kindness and joy,” said Mrs. Claus. “As we celebrate this special time of year, let’s remember that the magic of Christmas isn’t just lights and gifts and festivities, it is how we treat one another. Every day we have the opportunity to share kindness and to create a community where everyone feels valued.”
The crowd then helped count down in preparation for the official lighting of Harmony Square.
Attendees clapped and cheered as the square came to life, and many took the chance for family photos in front of the large Christmas tree, while others danced along to Christmas carols
With the square shining bright, residents went off to grab free hot chocolate, candy and other goodies, while others had their faces painted with a festive design, took pictures with Santa and wrote their last-minute letters to the North Pole during the after party, Santa and Mrs. Claus greeted the crowd and thanked them for coming out in the cold weather.
Carrol said he was happy with the overall turnout for the parade, even with the colder temperature.
“It’s a great example of what ‘community’ looks like, right? One of things I love about this parade is helping other people talk about their business or group and what they do,” said Carrol. “We had a bunch of people message us this year who were new to Brantford and or had never been to a Santa Claus parade before so for many of them, this was the first time either being in the parade or just getting to watch their first parade ever and it’s almost like an education about what exists in our community, and how great is that?”
Kimberly De Jong’s reporting is funded by the Canadian government through its Local Journalism Initiative.The funding allows her to report rural and agricultural stories from Blandford-Blenheim and Brant County. Reach her at kimberly.dejong@brantbeacon.ca.
