Delray Beach celebrates St. Patrick's Day with a parade
By Palm Beach Business.com
DELRAY BEACH — Delray Beach turned green Saturday as firefighters from throughout South Florida and beyond took part in the city’s 43rd annual St. Patrick’s Day parade, the one that almost didn’t happen.
This year’s theme: a tribute to firefighters from around the world. Both modern and antique fire fighting equipment from Palm Beach, Broward, Miami-Dade and St. Lucie counties made the parade route down Atlantic Avenue.
Firefighters came on motorcycles, in honor guards, in dress uniforms, in bagpipe bands and fife and drum groups from as far away as Baltimore and Indianapolis.
Huge flags hung over the parade route, including an Irish flag at Swinton Avenue. Miss Palm Beach County came courtesy of the FOOLS — Fraternal Order of Leatherheads. The late Adam Rosenthal, a sergeant with the Delray Beach Police Department who died last month, was remembered with a banner.
The parade even had its own air arm — a Huey helicopter circa the Vietnam War was towed down Atlantic by the Veterans of Foreign Wars.
Rising costs almost killed the parade — Nancy Stewart-Franzcak, the parade’s executive director, said expenses have doubled over the past two years.
But the city’s business community stepped up to fund this year's edition. Sponsors included: of PeterMark Salon, Mercedes-Benz of Delray, Bru's Room Sports Grill, Cigar Connoisseur, Stuart & Shelby Development, and the new Buddha Sky Bar and Atlantic Ocean.
(Pictured above, left: If you think his moustache is green, you're not seeing things.)
A St. Patrick's Day parade without bagpipes is impossible. Firefighters/pipers from throughout South Florida and beyond marched and played together during the parade.
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