Parade preparations running smoothly

ST. CLAIR SHORES — The St. Clair Shores Memorial Day Parade preparations are in full swing to celebrate Memorial Day the St. Clair Shores way.

Pamela Mason, the chairperson of the St. Clair Shores Memorial Day Parade Committee, said they’ve been working hard on their fundraiser dinner coming up at the end of the month. For the last couple years, the dinner was hosted at the Cpl. Walter F. Bruce Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 1146, but due to scheduling conflicts, it moved locations. 

The dinner will be hosted from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. on April 30 at the St. Margaret of Scotland Church. Tickets are $20 for adults and $10 for children 10 and under. Some of the menu items include pasta with red or white sauce, meatballs and more.

The parade will step off at 1 p.m. on May 24 on Harper Avenue.

Mason said preparations have been running smoothly.

“I can’t tell you how absolutely wonderful (the) St. Margaret’s Men’s Club has been,” Mason said.

The grand marshal this year is Brig. Gen. Leah Voelker. She is the commander of the 127th Wing and Selfridge Air National Guard Base. Voelker is the first female commander of the base.

The Veteran of the Year is Vito Romita.

A new honor this year is the St. Clair Shores Military Family of the Year. Mason said they do have a family chosen. The father is a retired veteran, and his wife is in the reserves on deployment.

“Hopefully she’s back in time for the parade, but dad’s holding down the fort and taking care of the kids while she’s away,” Mason said.

She went on to say it’s a pretty cool addition to the parade.

“I’m sure there’s plenty of military families in our community and it’s really cool to put a little spotlight on them because you never know what somebody is going through,” Mason said.

Councilman Dave Rubello said parade planning is going fantastic. He said they’ve received applications, and they have a good staff. The main focus is collecting funds for the celebration.

“If your group wants to be a part of the parade, contact me,” Rubello said. 

He said the committee is searching for a wide variety of entries including Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, military groups and more.

At press time, the parade had around 60 entries. Mason said they get a big influx of entries about six weeks before the parade.

The parade committee is still looking for volunteers. Mason said they need people who can carry state flags the length of the parade.

The committee created a QR code to fundraise as well. It allows residents to donate to the parade. Mason said it will help continue the tradition.

“It’s not cheap to put on this parade so every dollar, every single dollar counts,” Mason said.

Rubello said Mason is working hard to tie all the strings together.

“(To) make sure we can send that parade down Harper Avenue,” Rubello said. 

Maria Galla is the volunteer coordinator and can be contacted at (586) 293-0100.

St. Margaret of Scotland Church is located at 21201 13 Mile Road. 

For more information, go to facebook.com/scsmemorialdayparade.