The threat of rain Friday evening was not enough to keep Decatur residents from coming out to watch the annual Decatur Christmas Parade as it snaked down Broad Street to the Newton County Courthouse.
While initially small, the crowd grew as more and more people braved the dark skies to see The Grinch, Cindy Lou Who and Santa Claus ride through on floats, tossing candy to waiting children.
Mark Buntyn, president of Greater Decatur Chamber of Commerce, which puts on the parade each year, said the weather caused a few worries but did not put a damper on the holiday event.
“We had a good turnout,” he said. “The threat of rain held back the crowd for a while, but right at the last moment we had, I would say, a very good turnout.”
The number of floats, too, looked like to be impacted by the weather forecast at first. Earlier in the week, Buntyn said only a few groups had signed up to participate. However, he said a last-minute rush put this year’s parade in line with previous year’s participation numbers.
“We had a lot of floats show up at the last minute,” he said. “The weather played a big part. Some of the floats just didn’t want to get out.”
In total, Buntyn said, there were about 35 organizations represented in Friday’s parade, which is about normal for Decatur.
“We’re so fortunate that our community came together, and everyone decided we’re going to have a parade tonight no matter what,” he said. “And we did.”
With the rain holding off later than meteorologists had forecast, a great crowd and good participation, Buntyn said he was very happy with the way the 2018 Christmas Parade had turned out.
“Decatur wanted a Christmas parade, and I’m glad Decatur got one tonight,” he said.
