PARADES

Like most kids, I loved parades...still do, really. Back when I was little, Lorain had parades for Memorial Day, the Fourth of July, Labor Day, and Halloween. Later, in the mid-Sixties, the International Festival was started in late summer, with its own parade.

The parades were always on Broadway, so back then, we only had to walk a block; the last one I saw, which was the Memorial Day Parade in '90, I only had to look down from my front window, as the parade was going by below.

My favorite thing when I was little was the floats with the girls tossing candy to the crowd, usually taffys or Tootsie-Rolls. The best parade, though, was the Halloween Parade, with all the people in costumes storebought and homemade, and even more candy.

There were always soldiers and other veterans in the parades, and I remember one, I think for the Fourth, when I got to stand by a flatbed carrying a Snark missile.

My Cub Scout pack, 341, was in the Memorial Day Parade in '64; we marched for what seemed like miles down Broadway, with people clapping and waving...it was great.

I dunno if Lorain still has parades...if not, they should. We live in a great country, with rights and freedoms that people in other countries can only dream about. Lorain has lost a lot, but is still a great American town, worthy of a parade or two.