Main Street Celebrates 25 Years With Annual Lighted Christmas Parade

The 24th Annual Lighted Christmas Parade was greeted with snow and a winter chill

Oskaloosa, Iowa – With a cool overcast evening, the crowd was slow to gather in downtown Oskaloosa, but not all the activity was on the square to begin with. An art show featuring the works from area kids is on display in the Iowa Building, so along with a soup supper at the Central United Methodist Church, some gospel music being played at the center court of Penn Central Mall, and, of course, shopping. There were many places for everyone to keep warm.

With the distant flashing lights of the lead police unit, the 24th annual Lighted Christmas Parade headed west down High Avenue. With the temps in the low 30’s, the snow began to come down. “The snow was an added plus!! Love it”, Tammy Kelderman said of the well timed snowfall.

The over 65 entries cruised by for nearly an hour and a half, bringing cheers and words of excitement from children along the route.

Working in his usual spot, Charlie Comfort helped to keep the parade running smoothly by helping to coordinate when floats entered the lineup. “Like my previous years in helping out with the parade, it was another fun year of lining up floats. I got through getting my floats taken care of pretty quickly this year. The weather was a bit different this year, as it snowed and was chillier than I remember. Overall, it was a great night.” Comfort said.

One more night remains for those who were unable to attend Thursday night’s parade. The parade will once again start at 7 pm for the final run of “Silver Bells” in honor of Oskaloosa’s 25th year as a Main Street community.

Photos from the first night of the parade are HERE. LINK