WvB In St. Patrick's Day Parade 2025

Name: WvB In St. Patrick's Day Parade 2025
Start: 2025-03-15T11:00:00-05:00
End: 2025-03-15T13:00:00-05:00
Location: Downtown Huntsville

Schedule

Sat Mar 15 2025 at 11:00 am to 01:00 pm

UTC-05:00

Location

Downtown Huntsville | Huntsville, AL

The Huntsville St. Patrick's Day Parade will be at 11:00 AM on Saturday, March 15th, in downtown Huntsville, AL. However, you need to be in line and ready to go by 10:45 AM in Lot K across from the Post Office at 620 Clinton Avenue. For more information, and the parade itself, please visit:
https://www.facebook.com/HSVStPats/
https://www.facebook.com/events/2383752641958984/
https://www.facebook.com/events/523591736678198/
https://parade.irishsocietyna.org/
Detailed listing of rules, regulations, and guidelines that everyone marching must follow:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1zSQKe7pjviN8Dp3pwenDHO195muDLJWo/view
Afterwards, we'll be having lunch at Lowe Mill so we can attend the Huntsville Comic Con at 1 PM. Please see the separate event for that. Feel free to attend one event or the other, or both.
Staging begins in Lot K at 8:30 AM. Unlike previous years, there is no designated spot to line up by a cone. We just show up and claim a spot in line for our designated province. We've usually end up in the Connacht Province, which is the second line to start the parade, so we should finish relatively early. The Connacht Province line is the second one from the right as you enter Lot K. We'll probably get as close as we can to the Innerspace Brewing company's "shuttle" float at the start of the line.
Since we don't have any vehicles, CO Richard L. Trulson will have our place picked out by 10:15 AM. You don't have to be there quite that early, but make sure you are lined up in Lot K and ready to go by 10:45AM. Enter Lot K on foot via Clinton Avenue. If you need help, ask the parade organizers at the green help tent for the "USS Wernher von Braun" group. Otherwise, just look for the geeks in Starfleet uniforms.
Due to the expense and hassle, we will NOT be handing out candy or anything during the parade. If you'd like to carry our signs and banners, we would appreciate the help and publicity.
For those marching, paid parking is available in VBC lot L and City Garage M. However, it may be easier to Uber/Lyft or carpool in. There may be free spots closer to Lot K, but they will fill up quickly. Do NOT park in Lot K itself, or in the business lots beside it on Woodson St. Some park along the Heart of Huntsville Drive, though Street and other lot parking is at your own risk.
Last year, the CO parked at the end of the parade route in the huge lot next to the Lumberyard. He then walked down to the Bus Transfer Station at the 500 Church St and Cleveland Ave. He then took Patton Route 2 bus line, which has a stop at Lot K about 5 minutes after departing the Transfer Station every 30 minutes. Cost was only $1.
https://www.huntsvilleal.gov/residents/streets/public-transportation/huntsvilletransit/
They will have portable restrooms at lot K available for marcher use. Bottled water is no longer available to purchase, so make sure you bring your own. Even though St. Patrick's Day is known for its green beer and other drunken revelry, the parade is a family friendly event. Therefore, alcoholic beverages are NOT allowed in the parade or staging areas.
Keep in mind that March weather can be anything from sun to snow, so plan accordingly. Even if it rains, the parade will go on. It will be cancelled only in the event of lightening or other severe weather. Keep an eye on their Facebook page and this event page for any cancellation notices. Even if the parade goes on, we may not march if the weather is extremely cold. Umbrellas or hats will be good to keep rain or sun off your head and face. Since you can still sunburn in cloudy conditions, use sunscreen.
Even though we're a Star Trek club, any and all science-fiction / fantasy / comic / genre fans are welcome to march with us. Feel free to invite your family and friends to the event so they can march with us. You do not have to be Irish to March.
Keep in mind that the parade route is 1.6 miles long, which will probably take about an hour to march due to all the starts and stops. Depending on where we are in the line-up, we should be finished marching by 12 noon. Therefore, you will probably be on your feet for about two hours by the time you add in the wait time at the beginning. Please be mindful of these conditions if you have any sort of physical issues that might prevent you from marching.
Also note that the parade route is no longer a circular route that brings us back to the beginning at Lot K. The parade now ends at AM Booth's Lumberyard at the corner of Meridian Street and Cleveland Avenue. Transportation back to Lot K will be provided via the Huntsville city shuttle busses. The City's small Orbit busses are scheduled to depart the Lumberyard every 15 minutes throughout the parade, though they weren't very diligent about being exactly where they said they would be last year. Therefore, it's recommended you do the park and and bus routine that the CO used last year. Keep in mind that the parade might block your traffic depending on where you parked, and that the traffic may be congested due to everyone trying to leave at once.
Uniforms or other costumes are highly encouraged, though any green attire is acceptable. We have extra Starfleet uniform tops to share, so let us know what size you need to borrow. All you need to do is wear black or green slacks to complete the uniform. A A green shamrock "commbadge" pin will also be provided to our group marchers, which you can keep as a souvenir of the occasion. You're also welcome to "bling" up your own costume as you see fit so long as you observe all laws and community taste standards. Sorry, but that means Orion slave girls will need to wear more than a skimpy two-piece bikini. Besides, it will probably be too cold for that.
The best Star Trek connection is that Chief Miles O'Brien is Irish. Plus, there are several green-skinned races like the Gorn and Orion Syndicate, and the green blooded Vulcans.