Parade Described As Amazing!

Vernie Wells was honored during the annual Main Street Lighted Christmas Parade.

Oskaloosa, Iowa – The lights on the floats are off, and items are being stored for next year’s Main Street Lighted Christmas Parade.

Emily Brown, Director of Oskaloosa Main Street, sat down with Oskaloosa News this past week to talk about what went right and what may change for next year’s parade.

“I think the first-ever Saturday lighted Christmas Parade was a great success,” said Brown. “I had a chance to get out and see the size of the crowd and listen in on some conversations myself, and I’m happy with how it went.

The parade moved to Saturday after feedback from the community after last year’s parade, and the public shared feedback about this year’s parade.

Discussion points included making it a two-day event again, with a parade on both Friday and Saturday night. Lengthening the parade route, restrooms, and start times are other items the public brought forward to help make the parade an even better experience.

The parade was the finale to the celebration that got its start on Thursday evening inside of Penn Central Mall with a gospel concert.
Mahaska Drug presented many family fun events inside of Penn Central Mall on Friday and Saturday, and a women’s luncheon was held on Friday as well.

“Last year, I was on maternity leave, so I viewed it [parade] from my office window, and this year, I was able to be out along the parade route and see it from a different perspective that I haven’t been able to in the past. It gave me a new appreciation for just how complex everything that day is,” added Brown.

Winners for the parade were announced on the following Saturday at Merry Little Downtown Christmas.

The Oskaloosa High School Band won for best music.

Outstanding out of town entry went to Ajinomoto, while Diamonds and Dust Equestrian Drill Team took the honors in the use of animals category.

The Outstanding Church entry during the parade went to First Christian Church, while the Outstanding Nonprofit went to the Scouts.

Outstanding Small Business was awarded to Debbies Celebration Barn, and Outstanding Medium Business went to Hospice of the Midwest. Outstanding Large Business was awarded to Mahaska Health.

The Most Outstanding Individual Family entry went to the Rozenboom Sisters. The Musical entry went to William Penn University Athletic Band.

Thunder Country KIIC Radio was awarded the Most Outstanding Out of Town entry, while most outstanding use of animals went to Skunk River Drafts.

The Oskaloosa First Assembly of God was awarded most Outstanding Church, while the Southern Iowa Fair was awarded Most Outstanding Nonprofit.

Mandy’s School of Dance won Most Outstanding Small Business, while Mahaska Drug won the Most Outstanding Medium Business. Clow Valve won the Most Outstanding Large Business.

The Judges Choice Award went to the Oskaloosa Area Chamber and Development Group Diplomats.

Children’s Choice Awards was presented to Musco Sports Lighting.

Town Square Dental Care was awarded the Window Decorating Contest Honors.

Jane Nicholson of Mahaska Drug loves Christmas, and she’s been sharing her love of Christmas for years. Many of the fun-filled events held in Oskaloosa are sponsored by Mahaska Drug, which included the Merry Little Downtown Christmas, which included free horse-drawn carriage rides.

“I just love Christmas, and I love seeing people happy, and I mostly love seeing all the smiles on the kids,” said Nicholson. “I literally think about Christmas all year round. Yeah, it’s kind of crazy, but I just have always loved Christmas. So I try to think of things that we can do to make it better for everybody and Oskaloosa to enjoy it.”

Posted by on Dec 16 2019. Filed under Local News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. Both comments and pings are currently closed.

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