This weekend, children of all ages will have plenty of opportunities to celebrate the beginning of summer at the first annual Clyde Summer Solstice Parade and Fair.
The Clyde Ag Society has spearheaded the festival, but nearly every community organization in the village has got involved.
“There’s a lot of groups in Clyde that have now come forward to be a part of it and make it a bigger community event as opposed to just the ag society,” said Linda McCoy, one of the festival’s organizers.
She and the other organizers wanted to get a summer activity like this one going in Clyde to provide a kickoff to summer for the area’s children.
“We just wanted to bring something for the younger community to Clyde, because there are so many kids in Clyde,” she said. “It’s the first time it’s been done. I’m not even sure the last time there was a parade or anything like that in Clyde.”
The summer solstice, June 21, is the longest day of the year in the northern hemisphere. Organizers chose the solstice as the theme for the event not just because it is widely recognized as the first official day of summer, but also because it is a convenient time during the year to have this kind of a festival — before families leave the area on summer vacation.
“We thought it’s a good theme we can stick with every year, and keep that as our name,” McCoy said.
The day will begin with a pancake breakfast, followed by a parade. There are more than 20 entrants registered for the parade. The parade will leave the curling rink, exit on to 49 St., go west on 50 Ave., north of 50 St. then east on 52 Ave. It will follow this route twice before ending near the school.
Following the morning’s activities, there will be a whole slew of different kids’ activities to take in at the fair grounds, including inflatable rides like a bouncy castle, a pony carousel, a petting zoo, dunk tank, face painting and a money pit, which is essentially just a big pile of sand with money hidden in it so that kids can dig for it.
There will also be four gymkhana-style events that riders 17 years old and younger can participate in, for a fee of $5 per event. All events will be free for spectators.
A senior rookie minor baseball tournament will also take place at the same time.
McCoy said she has been especially pleased with the level of support the community has given to this project, with most community organizations donating time and space to make it a success. She added she hopes families in the area will take advantage of the free activities all day long and help to celebrate the beginning of summer with their kids.
“It’s just a fun thing for the kids to do. It’s just more of the old traditional stuff and all the fun without the midways and all that,” she said. “You get to spend a little more quality time with your kids and just let them get out and have fun.”
