Successful Port Perry Santa Claus Parade brings back memories of pre-pandemic times

While most other municipalities cancelled or made virtual their annual holiday parades, Port Perry and the Township Scugog went ahead on Saturday with a Christmas parade that was about as close to traditional as possible in these pandemic times.

Thirty-five floats took part in the Port Perry Santa Claus Parade, a collaboration between the Scugog Chamber of Commerce, The Port Perry Lions, and the Township, and while crowds were by necessity thinner than in pre-COVID days, the people on hand to watch in the streets were glad they came, said Scugog Councillor Robert Rock.

“Feedback on the event has been fantastic and everyone seems very happy that they got to have a parade again,” Rock said. “It was extremely well attended, with people all along the route.”

Rock thanked the many groups that put the safe and socially-distanced event together, from the organizers and sponsors to the Agricultural Society for donating the Fairgrounds as a rally point and local police for being able to “step up in a very short period of time” to help.

“It is a great example of many groups working together under very tight timelines to produce an event,” he added. “Also, a big thank you to everyone who attended. Everyone was very respectful, well behaved, and were focused on fun.”

Rock said the original plan was a ‘reverse parade’ in the Fairgrounds, “but when the Province lifted restrictions the decision was made to shift gears and turn it back into a traditional parade.”

The parade, which got underway at five p.m., started at Reach and Simcoe streets before turning south to Queen Street, then east to Water Street and finishing at Mary Street.

“Next year,” promised the Ward 3 Councillor, who was appointed to the seat in August to fill the vacancy left by the departing Angus Ross, “will be even a bigger and better event.”