The West Seattle Grand Parade doesn’t just “happen.”

Before the 70+ entries – and hundreds of participants – roar, roll, and march down California SW this Saturday (July 21st), a lot of planning and coordination is required. Including the lineup meeting, which happened at American Legion Post 160 in The Triangle this past Monday night.

Above are key behind-the-scenes people who made that happen and who will be out Saturday ensuring it goes well – from left, standing, Michelle Edwards, Barbara Edwards, Jim Edwards, Meredith Laws, with Keith Hughes in front – plus, attending this time by phone, Dave Vague. (Michelle is leading the coordination this year, with Jim and Dave; Keith is parade chair for the parade-presenting organization Rotary Club of West Seattle, of which Meredith is the new president.)

We sat in on the lineup meeting again this year and while the parade continues to take shape in the days after it, here are some toplines so far:

*1 Seattle Fire engine
*1 classic privately owned fire truck
*Two police motorcycle drill teams (including the only U.S. appearance by Vancouver, B.C., PD, as usual)
*Two marching bands (All-City Band, which includes musicians from local public schools, and Kennedy HS)
*Three visiting floats
*Scout groups
*Youth sports teams
*Schools
*Drill teams
*Jump-ropers
*Community organizations
*Local businesses
*Cultural groups
*Candidates
*VIPs, including, as already announced, Grand Marshal Lora Swift and Orville Rummel Trophy winner Velko Vitalich
*The full Seafair parade contingent, including Pirates, Clowns, the court, and more

What’s new this year: The PAWrade (still time for you to register – or, just show up at California/Genesee with your pup on Saturday morning!)

What you won’t see: The pre-parade Float Dodger 5K is on hiatus this year.

Who’s announcing: If you’re watching in The Junction, you’ll hear the voice of West Seattle’s own longtime broadcaster/journalist Brian Callanan.

Where to watch: Anywhere along the route! You can see the map on the official parade website. (Remember that California SW along the route will be closed by midmorning, and there are parking restrictions on adjacent streets too, especially the staging streets near the start of the route.)

How long does it last? The motorcycles go first, sometime after 10:30 am. The PAWrade will start from California/Genesee at 11 am. The parade generally ends around 1 pm (sooner of course if you’re watching toward the start of the route in The Admiral District).

The VIPs out of the spotlight: Besides the parade coordinators and assistants at the start of the route – including help from Seafair – the West Seattle Amateur Radio Club will have radio operators all along the route (led by Jim Edwards, who travels the route on motorcycle) in constant communication. And the judges (led by Barbara Edwards) will be at various spots along the route – the winners are announced later in the day and as always, we’ll publish the list.

See you at the Grand Parade – a West Seattle tradition since 1934!

P.S. Saturday’s bus reroutes are linked here.

(Photo from 2017 West Seattle Grand Parade)

Before we get going with today’s West Seattle Summer Fest coverage – and whatever other news the day brings – we want to remind you about next Saturday’s mega-event: The 2018 West Seattle Grand Parade, preceded by the first-ever PAWrade. The parade’s official start time is 11 am, California/Lander, heading southbound to California/Edmunds, but if you’re watching at or near the start of the route, you’ll want to be in place sooner for the Seattle Police and Vancouver, B.C., Police Motorcycle Drill Teams, which start between 10:30 and 11 to zoom down the parade route before the rest of the parade. And in The Junction, you and your dog are invited to be part of the first-ever PAWrade, which will bark its way down California SW from Genesee to Edmunds at 11 am, between the motorcycles and the Grand Parade. Want to be part of the PAWrade? Register here now, so you don’t have to worry about it on parade day! As for the Grand Parade itself – presented by the West Seattle Rotary Service Foundation: As we’ve reported, Lora Swift is the Grand Marshal, and Velko Vitalich is the Orville Rummel Trophy winner, so you’ll see them riding toward . If you’re watching in The Junction, you’ll hear West Seattle’s own award-winning broadcaster/journalist Brian Callanan announce the parade. If you’re not a parade fan, at least remember that you’ll have to stay off California SW until it’s over (if everything goes off on time, the last entries usually pass the end of the route sometime after 1 pm), and there’ll be parking restrictions on the side streets too. More previews in the days ahead!

(WSB photo, 2017)

Every summer, two honorees are chosen to ride toward the start of the West Seattle Grand Parade – the Grand Marshal (as announced earlier this week, Lora Swift) and the winner of the Orville Rummel Trophy for Outstanding Service to the Community. This year’s Orville Rummel Trophy recipient has just been announced: Velko Vitalich, best known as West Seattle High School‘s baseball coach for 31 years – a run that just ended a year ago.

Coach Velko’s retirement didn’t start then, though – he stayed on at WSHS (his alma mater, Class of 1973) to coach golf this past season. He’ll be formally presented with the trophy at next Tuesday’s West Seattle Big Band Concert in the Park (co-sponsored by WSB), 7 pm July 17th on the east lawn at Hiawatha Community Center, and then you can cheer for him as he rides down the parade route four days later, on Saturday, July 21st (starting at 11 am, southbound on California SW from SW Lander in Admiral to SW Edmunds in The Junction). The parade is presented by the West Seattle Rotary Service Foundation and coordinated by local volunteers.

ABOUT THE ORVILLE RUMMEL AWARD: It’s named after the man who founded the West Seattle parade in 1934, Orville Rummel – lots of background in the story we published the year we were honored with the trophy, in 2010. The award was first presented in 1984. Here’s the full list of recipients along the way:

1984: Charles and Ann Gage
1985: RB Chris Crisler Jr.
1986: Morgan and Carol McBride
1987: Margaret Miaullis
1988: Charles Jung
1989: Aurlo Bonney
1990: Katie Thorburn
1991: Dorothy Poplawski
1992: Dan Wiseman
1993: Virgil Sheppard
1994: Dorene Smith
1995: Doris Richards
1996: John Kelly
1997: Dick Kennedy
1998: Jim Edwards and Barbara Edwards
1999: Lt. David E. Cass
2000: Husky Deli/Miller Family
2001: Stephanie Haskins
2002: Forest Lawn
2003: Sue Lindblom
2004: Edgar and Ann Phipps
2005: Karen Sisson
2006: Walt DeLong
2007: David and Doreen Vague
2008: Tim St. Clair
2009: Morey Skaret
2010: West Seattle Blog
2011: Cindi Barker
2012: Shirley Vradenburgh
2013: Judy Pickens
2014: Earl Cruzen
2015: Donn Weaver
2016: Clay Eals
2017: Keith Hughes
2018: Velko Vitalich

What a year for Lora Swift! Just a little past halfway into 2018, she’s already scored two major local honors – first, Westsider of the Year, as awarded by the West Seattle Chamber of Commerce, and now, we’ve learned she’s been chosen as Grand Marshal of the West Seattle Grand Parade (coming up July 21st)! You might know her best as executive director of the West Seattle Junction Association, but that’s just one of the many hats (and tiaras!) Lora has worn in the community. For more than a decade, she was proprietor of Hotwire Online Coffeehouse at the north end of The Junction; there, she founded what’s now the West Seattle Outdoor Movies series, which brings hundreds of people together on summer Saturday nights, and she’s also masterminded the West Seattle Art Walk among other fab community events. Right now, as news of her parade honor is announced, she’s coordinating the peninsula’s biggest party, West Seattle Summer Fest, Friday-Sunday (July 13th-15th) in the heart of The Junction. And then – maybe she can at least take a quick break to bask in the cheers along the parade route when she rides as Grand Marshal, starting at 11 am Saturday, July 21st, southbound on California SW from Lander to Edmunds. (WSB photo from May, as Lora volunteered at West Seattle Food Bank gala)

(2017 West Seattle Grand Parade WSB photo by Christopher Boffoli)

Here in the heart of summer, there’s so much going on, we spend almost as much time on reminders (and calendar listings) as on coverage! Today, we want to start reminding you about the West Seattle Grand Parade, now exactly two weeks away, on Saturday, July 21st. Its official start time is 11 am, with the route running southbound on California SW from SW Lander in The Admiral District to SW Edmunds in The Junction, but if you’re watching at or near the start of the route, you’ll want to get in place sooner because the motorcycle drill teams head off down the route first, as early as 10:30 am. This is the ONLY parade in Seattle where you’ll see two police motorcycle drill teams – Seattle and Vancouver, B.C. (their only area appearance) Dozens of other entrants include local organizations and businesses as well as citywide parade favorites such as the All-City Band [photo above]. The parade is in its ninth (!) decade and is produced by the West Seattle Rotary Service Foundation, with a team of local volunteers coordinating, and support from Seafair, as it’s an officially sanctioned event. (Haven’t been to the parade before? Here’s one of our reports from last year, featuring the prize-winning entries, including lots of video. More specifics as the parade gets closer!)

P.S. New this year, as we’ve noted previously, you and your dog are invited to be part of the pre-parade PAWrade in The Junction! Meet up starting at 10:15 am at California and Genesee, and then PAWrade southbound through The Junction starting at 11. You can register that day BUT pre-registration is appreciated – you can do that online here. Free! Prizes!

One last gallery from Saturday’s West Seattle Grand Parade, before the weekend is completely over – more of the wheels!

That view is from @tweetbyvika – the motorcycle drill teams led the parade as usual. Our views were from ground level once they reached The Junction:

Read More

Some walk, some march, some ride, some roll … however they get down the parade route, the people ARE the parade. So here are more of the hundreds who traveled down California SW at midday Saturday for this year’s West Seattle Grand Parade:

Those are the West Seattle Little League All-Stars who just won a state championship carried their banner down the route. And we saw a strong presence of Scouts — Girl Scouts …

… and Boy Scouts:

Read More

The judging results are in … and here’s who the West Seattle Grand Parade judges chose as the winners this year. Topping the list, same grand-prize winner as last year – congratulations to the All-City Band, led by West Seattle’s own Marcus Pimpleton (who is also assistant principal at Denny International Middle School):

Overall Grand Prize Winners

(WSB photo by Christopher Boffoli)

1st – Seattle Schools All-City Marching Band

2nd – Electronettes Drill Team & Drum Squad

3rd – West Seattle Lions Club

Marching Bands

1st – Kennedy Catholic High School Marching Band

Cars & Motorcycles

1st – Senior Center of West Seattle

2nd – Soil Sciences Products

3rd – Nile Shriners

Performing Acts

Joyas Mestizas in @wsparade pic.twitter.com/oxWpiDrhwZ

— West Seattle Blog (@westseattleblog) July 22, 2017

1st – Joyas Mestizas – Seattle Mexican Youth Folk Dance

2nd – Pathfinder K-8 School Unicycle Team

The first @SeafairPirates cannon blast of the @wsparade pic.twitter.com/X0Kabdvwg0

— West Seattle Blog (@westseattleblog) July 22, 2017

3rd – Seafair Pirates

Commercial

The Eldercare Consulting walker drill team! pic.twitter.com/8WSA0DZ7xJ

— West Seattle Blog (@westseattleblog) July 22, 2017

1st – Eldercare Consulting

2nd – The Little Gym of West Seattle
3rd – Ronald McDonald

Community

Southside Revolution Jr. Roller Derby pic.twitter.com/JjRexVl7Ze

— West Seattle Blog (@westseattleblog) July 22, 2017

1st – Southside Revolution Jr. Roller Derby
2nd – WestSide Baby – Stuff the Bus

Cora from WS Amateur Radio Club, always a hit. pic.twitter.com/mTi0bvcJoA

— West Seattle Blog (@westseattleblog) July 22, 2017

3rd – West Seattle Amateur Radio Club

Drill Teams – Junior
1st – Butterfly Electronettes Drill Team

2nd – Washington Diamonds Drill Team Jr.

Drill Teams – Senior

Back this year – the Seattle Chinese Community Girls Drill Team! pic.twitter.com/17SohNzA0u

— West Seattle Blog (@westseattleblog) July 22, 2017

1st – Seattle Chinese Community Girls Drill Team

2nd – West Seattle High School Cheer

The Diamonds drill team: pic.twitter.com/PIBE5drCeX

— West Seattle Blog (@westseattleblog) July 22, 2017

3rd – Washington Diamonds Drill Team Sr.

Floats – Large Community

1st – Marysville Strawberry Festival

The Daffodil Festival float that arrived in the big truck we showed earlier. pic.twitter.com/HQjzEUAUCx

— West Seattle Blog (@westseattleblog) July 22, 2017

2nd – Daffodil Festival

Floats – Smaller Community

1st – Fathoms O’ Fun – Port Orchard

2nd – Holy Rosary Church & School

Congratulations to all! We’ll be adding more photos (and some sunnier substitutions) and video of the winners in the hours ahead, and publishing other parade galleries too.

P.S. If you love parades … note that the White Center Jubilee Days Parade is tomorrow morning, 11 am, from 16th SW and SW 112th, heading north on 16th to 100th.

10:42 AM: The Seattle Police Motorcycle Drill Team is performing, and that marks the start of the 2017 West Seattle Grand Parade, From California/Lander in The Admiral District to California/Edmunds in The Junction. They and the Vancouver B.C. Police motorcycles perform before the rest of the parade, which is set to get going around 11, after hours of staging, practicing, and behind-the-scenes logistics by dozens of volunteers, from the parade co-coordinators, to the Seafair Parade Marshals assisting them, to the West Seattle Amateur Radio Club hams communicating along the route. This year’s parade is about the same size as last year – more than 70 entries, as of the lineup meeting we covered earlier this week – and that means it’ll likely conclude at this end around 12:30 pm, in The Junction after 1. If you’re watching on that end, also look for the Rotary Kiddie Parade leaving California/Genesee at 11. And watch our Twitter feed for parade photos and updates before our post-parade coverage!

12:13 PM: The parade has just concluded at the north end of the route, California/Lander. We have a crew at the south end, too, and will update when it wraps up there. The road will reopen block by block in most cases – the block between Admiral and Lander has just reopened, but police vehicles are keeping watch south of there while the parade proceeds. Meantime, from all the photos and videos we tweeted, a few sightings of note:

While this is the first year without Hi-Yu, a former Senior Court Queen was in the parade, one of the contenders in this year’s Seafair Scholarship Program for Women, April Davis. The next Miss Seafair will be crowned next week. And speaking of reigning …

Lots more photos and video in our upcoming roundups – but first we’re off to some of today’s other big events.

1:11 PM: Our crew in The Junction reports the parade has ended.

The runners in red shirts are from MyTeamTriumph of Puget Sound, and they started this morning’s pre-parade Float Dodger 5K – MTT is “an athletic ride-along created for children, teens, adults & veterans with disabilities who would normally not be able to experience events such as triathlons or road races,” and it’s this year’s Float Dodger 5K beneficiary. Here are the rest of the runners, leaving the start line:

This is the second year for the r5K, presented by West Seattle Runner (WSB sponsor), to start and finish at Hiawatha. Pre-race, we photographed WSR’s Tim McConnell with Teresa The Goldfish:

Once off the field, the runners got to “dodge” a new float this year:

(Photo courtesy Dave Vague)

They ran around the West Seattle Rotary float – the Rotary presents the West Seattle Grand Parade, which starts with the motorcycle drill teams leaving California/Lander around 10:30 am. In past years, runners have “dodged” the Hi-Yu float, but since that organization has deactivated, a new local dodge-able float had to be found. Meantime, we’re told about 400 people were signed up for the 5K – and the first finishers already are crossing. Results later! And for continuing pre-parade coverage, watch the WSB Twitter feed.

One more preview before the West Seattle Grand Parade arrives tomorrow (Saturday, July 22nd)!

(WSB photo, Vancouver B.C. Motorcycle Drill Team in 2015 West Seattle Grand Parade)

WHERE TO WATCH: Really, anywhere along the route. If you watch in The Junction, you’ll see the Kiddie Parade (11 am, southbound from California/Genesee) and you might hear the announcements (California/Alaska) too. If you watch near the start of the route, there’s a shady slope area along the west side of Hiawatha, and if you arrive early, you can walk around and see “behind the scenes” as parade participants line up and practice, and parade coordinators do their work to be sure everyone’s where they should be. With motorcycles taking off around 10:30, here’s what to expect, where, at 11 am, if all is going according to plan, says parade co-coordinator Jim Edwards:

Genesee St: Kids Parade
Andover St: Seattle Police Motorcycle Drill Team
Hinds St: Vancouver Police Motorcycle Drill Team
Lander St: Honor Guard

There are still some construction sites between the Admiral and Alaska Junctions, and some sites where construction has wrapped up since last year. So scout your spot early.

(West Seattle Grand Parade 2016 – photo by Don Brubeck)

DANCING DOWN THE ROUTE: Joyas Mestizas (file photo above) will be back.

BE TRUE TO YOUR SCHOOLS: They’ll be represented abundantly, including:

Pathfinder K-8 Unicycles (file photo above)
West Seattle High School Cheer Squad
Seattle Lutheran High School Cheer Squad
Westside School
Holy Rosary
Hope Lutheran
Kennedy High School Marching Band

AND … Scouts, skaters, Spud (2007 photo above – what will s/he wear THIS year?) … Pirates (remember they’re LOUD), politicians (we may have more county reps than city reps this year), and Potter Construction (parade and WSB sponsor – added, here are Karl and Gary, decorating the truck Friday night:)

… and many others we’re out of time for mentioning – you’ll just have to see for yourself! And remember that the Float Dodger 5K precedes the parade – not too late to be part of it (9:30 pm start from Hiawatha track, 2700 California SW).

PREVIOUS PARADE PREVIEWS (and coverage from the past decade) … scroll through this archive section.

P.S. Even if you’re not going to watch, or be in, the parade and/or 5K … heed the no-parking signs you’re seeing along and near the route … road closures and bus reroutes start early Saturday and should be over by 2.

P.P.S. The parade is presented by the West Seattle Rotary Club‘s Service Foundation. See our previous preview here.

(WSB file photos)

By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor

Just a few more days until hundreds of people comprising more than 70 entries will walk, roll, march, dance, and ride in the 2017 West Seattle Grand Parade, down California Avenue SW between The Admiral District and The Junction.

We sat in on the parade lineup meeting earlier this week and here are some of the highlights:

COMEBACKS: The Seattle Chinese Community Girls Drill Team, one of Seattle’s most popular parade performance groups, will be back this year. Last year, they marched in the Renton parade instead, and while that parade is on the same day this year, the group is coming back to West Seattle. Also returning after sitting out last year: Luna Park Café.

NEW: First-time entries include Camp Crockett (WSB sponsor).

TWO-WHEELIN’ IT: The Vancouver B.C. Police Motorcycle Drill Team will again make their only area appearance, following the Seattle Police Motorcycle Drill Team. The Shriners‘ mini-bike unit is joining the parade, too.

HUMAN-POWERED WHEELS: Participants include two roller-derby entries plus the Pathfinder K-8 Unicycles.

BOOM: Yes, of course the Seafair Pirates will “sail” down the parade route. Cannon and all.

FLOATING: Visiting floats will include the Daffodil Festival (Pierce County) and Strawberry Festival (Snohomish County) floats and Fathoms O’Fun from Port Orchard, right across Puget Sound from West Seattle. Remember that you will not see a West Seattle Hi-Yu float, as the organization has gone inactive.

LEADING THE WAY: As we reported earlier this week, American Legion Post 160 Commander Keith Hughes is this year’s recipient of the Orville Rummel Trophy for Outstanding Community Service. Just announced as Grand Marshal, your District 1 City Councilmember Lisa Herbold, who lives in Highland Park.

WHERE & WHEN: The official parade start time is 11 am from California/Lander. But the SPD motorcycles get going at about 10:30, so they and their Vancouver counterparts are done with their thrilling maneuvers before the Joint Base Lewis-McChord color guard leads off the rest of the parade. You can watch from anywhere along California between Lander and the end of the route at Edmunds on the south side of The Junction. The heart of The Junction is where you will hear announcements by emcee Alison Grande.

TRAFFIC ADVISORY: The streets will close as early as 7 am. It’s not just California between Admiral (a bit north of the parade’s starting line, for staging) and Edmunds, but also streets to the west and east, where you’ll see NO PARKING signs already out, especially toward the start of the route. Please take the signs seriously so that the parade can happen without a hitch.

BUS REROUTES: Five routes will be rerouted on parade day, 22, 50, 128, 773 (Water Taxi shuttle), and the C Line – you can find the information on Metro’s alerts page.

BEHIND THE SCENES: The West Seattle Rotary Service Foundation presents the parade; many volunteers make it happen, including the four we observed at the lineup meeting – co-coordinators Jim Edwards, Dave Vague, and Michelle Edwards, and judges including Doreen Vague. The West Seattle Amateur Radio Club participates in coordination along the route on parade day.

BEFORE THE PARADE: The Float Dodger 5K starts from Hiawatha Playfield at 9:30 am – if you’re not running/walking in it, you are still welcome to get to the parade route early and cheer them on … If you’re watching from The Junction, and have little one(s) in the family, they might want to be part of the West Seattle Kiddie Parade, leaving California and Genesee at 11 am, after the motorcycles and before the rest of the parade.

Watch for a few more previews and reminders before parade day arrives! And if you’re going to be in it and want to share any advance info, editor@westseattleblog.com – thanks! Our West Seattle Grand Parade coverage dating back to 2006 is archived here.

Next Saturday (July 22nd), the 84th annual West Seattle Grand Parade will bring hundreds of people rolling, dancing, marching down California SW from The Admiral District to The Junction, to the delight of thousands of people lining the route. Toward the start of the parade, you’ll see this year’s honorees – including Keith Hughes, this year’s recipient of the Orville Rummel Trophy for Outstanding Service to the Community, as announced by the West Seattle Rotary, which presents the parade.

Keith serves the West Seattle community in multiple ways and has also served our country. He is a Vietnam War-era U.S. Army veteran and has been Commander of American Legion Post 160 in West Seattle since 2012. He founded West Seattle Natural Energy, a solar-power firm, in 2008, and during that time has been an active member of Sustainable Seattle, King County Disaster Resilience Challenge, Northwest EcoBuilding Guild, Living Futures Institute, Cascade Climate Consortium, Solar Installers of Washington, Master Builders of King and Snohomish County, and the West Seattle Chamber of Commerce.

Keith, wife Lin, and daughter Amy moved to Seattle from Oregon in 1979, and in the years before founding West Seattle Natural Energy, he spent 15 years at Boeing and 15 in the IT department at Swedish Medical Center.

Keith’s community service also includes serving as president of the West Seattle Veteran Center (which operates from Post 160 HQ) in 2013, serving as chair of the Grand Parade committee before and after primary parade leadership transitioned to Rotary in 2014, and volunteering his time teaching classes and leading seminars on sustainable living and solar energy.

Before he rides down the parade route on Saturday (starting at 11 am at California/Lander and heading south) with the Orville Rummel trophy, you can see Keith accept the award during the official presentation at tomorrow night’s free West Seattle Big Band Concert in the Park, 7 pm on the east lawn at Hiawatha Community Center.

ABOUT THE ORVILLE RUMMEL AWARD: It’s named after the man who founded the West Seattle parade in 1934, Orville Rummel – lots of background in the story we published the year we were honored with it, in 2010. The award was first presented in 1984. Here’s the full list of recipients along the way:

1984: Charles and Ann Gage
1985: RB Chris Crisler Jr.
1986: Morgan and Carol McBride
1987: Margaret Miaullis
1988: Charles Jung
1989: Aurlo Bonney
1990: Katie Thorburn
1991: Dorothy Poplawski
1992: Dan Wiseman
1993: Virgil Sheppard
1994: Dorene Smith
1995: Doris Richards
1996: John Kelly
1997: Dick Kennedy
1998: Jim Edwards and Barbara Edwards
1999: Lt. David E. Cass
2000: Husky Deli/Miller Family
2001: Stephanie Haskins
2002: Forest Lawn
2003: Sue Lindblom
2004: Edgar and Ann Phipps
2005: Karen Sisson
2006: Walt DeLong
2007: David and Doreen Vague
2008: Tim St. Clair
2009: Morey Skaret
2010: West Seattle Blog
2011: Cindi Barker
2012: Shirley Vradenburgh
2013: Judy Pickens
2014: Earl Cruzen
2015: Donn Weaver
2016: Clay Eals
2017: Keith Hughes

(WSB file photo)

One week from Saturday, it’s the West Seattle Grand Parade, presented by the Rotary Club of West Seattle, which also wants to remind you that it’ll be preceded again this year in The Junction by the West Seattle Kiddie Parade. All kids are invited to participate – just show up!:

SATURDAY, JULY 22, 2017

Kiddie Parade begins at 11 AM

Register at the Rotary of West Seattle table at the corner of SW California and Genesee beginning at 9:45 AM.

Parade route – south down SW California from corner of Genesee to Edmunds.

Bring your bikes and wagons; parents bring your strollers. Free balloons!

The Grand Parade itself – which we’ll be previewing soon too – starts at that same time, 11 am July 22nd, but it gets going much further north, California/Lander. So if you want to see the Kiddie Parade *and* the Grand Parade, be sure you pick a viewing spot on California in The Junction.

(WSB photo, 2016 West Seattle Grand Parade)

The heart of summer really isn’t that far away! Exactly two months from today – on Saturday, July 22nd – hundreds of participants in the West Seattle Grand Parade will roll, stroll, march, dance, and ride down California Avenue SW from Admiral to The Junction. Once again this year, the West Seattle Rotary Service Foundation will present the Seafair-sanctioned parade, a summer tradition for more than 80 years. Ever been in it? Ever wanted to be in it? Ever wondered how to be in it? For starters – request an application. Parade producers say applicants “will be judged on crowd appeal and community” to determine who gets in, and that the parade is a “family-friendly venue.” Ready to fill out the application? Here’s how to get one!

Interspersed with the many community groups and businesses in Saturday’s West Seattle Grand Parade – four traditional motorized parade floats:

West Seattle is the only neighborhood in the city that still has its own traveling parade float, kept going year after year by the volunteers of West Seattle Hi-Yu. Earlier this summer, they put out a call for help – without it, they can’t keep going. And without Hi-Yu traveling to other parades, this one won’t get reciprocal visits from others in the region. This time, for the first time in a while, the Port Orchard Fathoms O’Fun float came from across Puget Sound:

The Marysville Strawberry Festival float has been a yearly favorite:

And the Daffodil Festival float from Pierce County, too – a wider view is in our report on the parade winners; here’s a close-up detail:

The West Seattle Grand Parade is officially sanctioned by Seafair, which means Seafair parade marshals help out, and Seafair sends its parade contingent, including the Pirates:

In our first report, we showed you the two police motorcycle drill teams that start the parade every year, including the Vancouver, B.C., officers whose appearance here is a Seattle-area exclusive. When both teams finished their shows, they stopped in The Junction to applaud each other:

We got some questions yesterday about a “motorcade” on the bridge … it wasn’t a motorcade, just the teams getting to and from the parade!

P.S. A few notes – The Chinese Community Girls’ Drill Team, usually a WSGP favorite, wasn’t here this year because the Renton River Days Parade was at the same time – this year brought some conflicts because it has five Saturdays … Next Saturday (July 30th), the region’s biggest parade of the year, the Seafair Torchlight Parade, happens downtown, and some of the participants you saw yesterday will be there – besides the Seafair contingent, also West Seattle Hi-Yu and the All-City Band. The night before Torchlight brings the Band Jam warmup, hosted by All-City, back to Southwest Athletic Complex here in West Seattle – free, 6:30 pm, all welcome, full preview to come!

Behind the scenes and on the route, participants and volunteers, it takes hundreds of people to create a parade. Here are some of them, before and during today’s West Seattle Grand Parade:

That’s Clay Eals, executive director of the Southwest Seattle Historical Society, whose three-plus decades of working in and for West Seattle made him a great choice for the Orville Rummel Community Service Trophy, explained in our June report announcing his selection. The Grand Parade always has a Grand Marshal, too, and this year it was the Schmitz Family, represented by Dietrich Schmitz and his mother Vicki Schmitz Block:

The family’s legacy includes the donation of Schmitz Park and its namesake nearby elementary school as well as Emma Schmitz Memorial Overlook on Beach Drive. (Here’s video of the Schmitz Family members and Eals toward the start of the parade.)

Also driving the parade route … longtime West Seattle community advocate Pete Spalding behind the wheel of the West Seattle Food Bank van:

Did you see the classic O’Neill Plumbing (WSB sponsor) truck in the parade? We caught up earlier with Tim and Todd O’Neill:

Members of another well-known local family, the Menashes, were seen waving from the Seafair Commodores‘ boat float:

And Potter Construction (WSB sponsor) was in the parade too – proprietor Gary Potter is a supporter also through his participation in the parade-presenting Rotary Club.

Another local entrepreneur was seen skateboarding – Greg Whittaker from Mountain to Sound Outfitters worked the crowd in The Junction, with his parade entry nearby:

The West Seattle YMCA (WSB sponsor) is a parade sponsor as well as participant:

Riding with the Seafair Scholarship Program for Women candidates in convertibles, the immediate past West Seattle Hi-Yu Senior Court Queen Kelly Crum, who is vying for Miss Seafair.

This year’s winner will be announced before the Torchlight Parade downtown one week from tonight. Royalty was also in view before the parade, the “Pirates and Princesses” breakfast at Brookdale Admiral Heights, just north of the parade route, honored the longstanding tradition of hospitality for visiting parade-float participants. West Seattle Hi-Yu Senior and Junior Court members posed with Seafair Pirates, whose land-borne vessel Moby Duck was at the ready outside:

And then there are the parade’s longtime volunteer co-coordinator, including Dave Vague (below right) at the check-in table on the northwest corner of California/Lander:

And co-coordinator Jim Edwards was visible on his motorcycle riding up and down the parade route, checking on how things were going, communicating with other amateur-radio operators embedded along the way .. we also caught him making a photo stop when the motorcycle drill teams were done:

The riders’ end-of-parade ceremony is part of another report still in the works.

Before the West Seattle Rotary Club took over production of the Grand Parade (Hi-Yu participates but it’s *not* “the Hi-Yu Parade), they presented the Kiddie Parade, and still do:

A small but festive contingent made their way down California from Genesee to Edmunds after the motorcycles and before the rest of the Grand Parade.

Among those looking on – Ringo the bulldog:

Here’s video of the Kiddie Parade’s start:

If you have little ones who would enjoy parading past the crowd, make plans to be part of it next year – just show up at the starting line by quarter till 11 or so.

(All-City Band getting ready for the parade with a performance for residents and Seafair Pirates at Brookdale Admiral Heights)

You don’t see them during the West Seattle Grand Parade – and that’s the point! Judges are all along the route, and when the parade’s over, the winners are announced. Here’s today’s list, with some photos/video and more to be added:

OVERALL PARADE WINNERS

1st – Seattle Schools All-City Marching Band
2nd – Westside Baby – Stuff the Bus
3rd – Port Orchard Fathoms O’ Fun Float

BANDS

1st – Kennedy Catholic High School Marching Band

DRILL TEAMS, SENIOR, AND CHEER SQUADS

1st – Electronettes Drill Team & Drum Squad
2nd – The Lady’s of Elegance Drill Team
3rd – Seattle Lutheran Cheer Squad

DRILL TEAMS, JUNIOR

1st – Butterfly Electronettes Drill Team
2nd – The Princesses of Elegance Drill Team
3rd – Diva Upgrade Drill Team

PERFORMING ACTS

(Photo by Don Brubeck)

1st – Joyas Mestizas – Seattle Mexican Folk Dance Youth
2nd – Pathfinder K-8 School Unicycle Team
3rd – Seattle Seafair Clowns

CARS AND ANTIQUE CARS

1st – West Seattle Lions Club
2nd – Soil Science Products
3rd – 1942 American LaFrance Fire Engine

COMMERCIAL

1st – The Little Gym of West Seattle
2nd – Ronald McDonald
3rd – PCC Natural Markets

COMMUNITY

1st – Our Lady of Guadalupe Church & School
2nd – Seattle Lutheran High School
3rd – Southside Revolution Junior Roller Derby

FLOATS

1st Place – WS Hi-Yu Royalty Trophy – Daffodil Festival
2nd Place – WS Rotary President’s Trophy – Marysville Strawberry Festival
3rd Place – WS Rotary Foundation Trophy – Fathom’s O’ Fun, Port Orchard

CONVEYED FLOATS

1st Place – Holy Rosary School
2nd Place – Hope Lutheran Church & School

Lots more parade highlights to come! (We usually aren’t done until early Sunday, so please check back.)