Christmas parade set for Saturday

Christmas should be in full swing Saturday in downtown Winchester, capped by the annual Christmas parade down Main Street.

This year’s parade, scheduled to begin at 6 p.m., will include about 60 entries. Half of those will be floats built and entered by local churches, businesses and other groups, Main Street Winchester director Rachel Alexander said. The Remember When Cruisers will bring several of their members’ vehicles and Lexington’s Oleika Shriners will be in force as well, she said.

The crowning moment, of course, will be the arrival of Santa Claus on the back of a fire truck. This year he will be accompanied by Mrs. Claus, she said.

“It’s not unprecedented, but it’s still very special,” Alexander said.

This year’s theme is Santa’s Workshop, as a nod to this year’s grand marshal Janet Watts of Janet Cobbler’s Shop.

“She has been in business on North Main for 40 years,” aAlexander said. “A cobbler is one of those professions that is dying out. We wanted to celebrate her longevity on Main Street. We thought the perfect theme would be Santa’s Workshop.”

There will be a panel of members from the Winchester Art Guild and the Main Street Winchester promotion committee judging parade entries. Cash prizes will be awarded to the top three, she said.

The parade will be the finale for a full day of events in downtown. from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., downtown businesses will host the Downtown Jungle and Mingle for the public to come down and shop and eat before the parade.

Santa and Mrs. Claus will also make an early appearance for photos from 2 to 4 p.m. in front of the Clark County Courthouse, Alexander said.

Poor weather, though, may be a factor in the parade and photos with Santa. Alexander said there will be a meeting Friday morning to decide whether to reschedule or proceed as planned.

The rain plans, she said, would be to move Santa and Mrs. Claus to D&S Hardware on Main Street.

The rain date for the parade would be 2 p.m. Sunday, she said, though the weather forecast is poor that day as well, she said.

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