It may well have been the wettest day in the Royal City in recent memory but that didn’t deter folks from hitting the streets for the Hyack International Parade.
Clutching umbrellas, and huddling into dry spots like bus shelters, businesses and doorways, community members watched the 45th annual Hyack Parade on Saturday. Along Queens Avenue, residents watched from the comforts of other homes, rather than taking to the curb to watch the parade pass by.
Participants, which included floats, marching bands and community entries, donned rain ponchos or carried umbrellas to try to remain as dry as possible in the torrential downpour. Local scouts repurposed a tarp, carrying it as they marched along the parade route.
“As I watched those folks on the sidewalks, clapping and cheering, they were the most energetic group I have seen there in years,” said Alan Wardle, president of the Hyack Festival Association. “They were there because they wanted to be. They enjoyed seeing the parade. Kids in their gumboots, kids in their raincoats and umbrellas - it was so heartwarming to see the turnout from so many people on such a crummy day.”
Wardle said representatives of the Northwest Festival Hosting Group, which brought entries to New Westminster from cities like Portland, Spokane, Seattle, Olympia, Leavenworth and Marysville, thanked the city for putting on the “soggiest parade on the tour” in 2016.
“We are all in this because we love to give to the community,” he said. “We are all smiles saying, we did it again. Despite the inclement weather, it happened.
Wardle said he only knows of one entry who withdrew from the parade because of the weather. He said a band leader made the decision to bow out of the parade, knowing some students had valuable instruments that could be damaged by getting wet.
‘It wasn’t just a sprinkle. It was a torrent,” he said. “There is die-hards that are out there. People were watching out their windows. It was heartwarming to see the community pull together. I don’t have the words to describe it.”
