People packed every patch of shade along Parnell Avenue on Monday for a Memorial Day parade that began at 11 a.m. An eclectic array of vehicles, floats, bands and flamboyantly patriotic marchers moved slowly from just north of State Boulevard to Memorial Coliseum. The commemoration concluded with a brief ceremony outside the coliseum's Memorial Hall.
The exceptionally hot weather – the temperature broke 90 degrees during the parade, according to National Weather Service records – deterred neither participants nor the cheering observers who lined the street.
The parade included something for every taste, from high school marching bands to neighborhood associations to the kid-thrilling sirens of firetrucks.
The range of organizations represented in the parade brought every tone from holiday celebration to deep solemnity to the event. Little children chased after candy thrown from floats, and people fell silent as Civil War re-enactors reminded everyone of the deadliest conflict in American history.
