The West Seattle Grand Parade is just five days away – this Saturday, from California/Lander in The Admiral District to California/Edmunds in The Junction. 11 am is the official starting time, but the motorcycle drill teams – Seattle Police and Vancouver (BC) Police will both be back – start a bit earlier, so make sure you’ve staked out your spot by 10:30 am. And at California/Genesee, the Kiddie Parade starts at 10 am – all kids welcome to join.

For years, the Kiddie Parade has been presented by the Rotary Club of West Seattle, and starting this year, the Rotary is presenting the entire Grand Parade, taking over from longtime parade presenter American Legion Post 160. But Post 160 headquarters – now home to Pershing Hall and the West Seattle Veterans’ Center – is still where parade-coordination-team members Jim Edwards, Dave Vague, Doreen Vague, and Michelle Edwards met tonight to draft the parade running order. Two bits of news we wanted to share:

(2009 WSB photo)
*Earl Cruzen, whose decades of community service include shepherding the Murals of West Seattle and Walking on Logs into existence, will be honored with the Orville Rummel Trophy for Outstanding Service to the Community, named after the man who was Post 160 Commander when the parade began. We’ll take a closer look at his community service in a separate story later this week.

*Marty Riemer, one of West Seattle’s most famous voices, will be heard at California/Alaska, announcing the parade entries. Marty’s current endeavors include a weekly podcast/webcast and the Tech Timeout Academic Challenge.

Stay tuned for more parade news as we count down all week – and then be there to stake out your spot somewhere along the route Saturday morning; the parade will be preceded by the third annual Float Dodger 5K (still time to sign up if you want to be part of that, pre-parade).

The Rotary Club of West Seattle, which this year for the first time is presenting the West Seattle Grand Parade, has announced this year’s Grand Marshal:

Medal of Honor recipient Col. Bruce Crandall (retired) will be the Grand Marshal of the 82nd annual West Seattle Grand Parade on July 19, 2014. Crandall was born in Olympia and resides in Kitsap County; his son, Steve, lives in West Seattle.

Crandall is a Master Army Aviator, qualified in both fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters, and a veteran of 900 combat missions in Vietnam. In addition to the Medal of Honor, he is also the recipient of the Purple Heart, Bronze Star, Distinguished Flying Cross with one oak leaf cluster and many other awards. In 2004 he was inducted into the Army Aviation Hall of Fame.

In a battle in November, 1965, Crandall, flying a series of three unarmed helicopters through the day and into the night, supplied a surrounded force of 450 US soldiers and evacuated 70 wounded. The battle is depicted in the Mel Gibson film “We Were Soldiers,” where Crandall is portrayed by actor Greg Kinnear.

In January, 1966, in the dark and under intense enemy fire, Crandall twice dropped his helicopter through dense jungle canopy to evacuate 12 wounded solders.

In January, 1968, his helicopter was shot down during another rescue attempt, and Crandall was hospitalized for five months with serious injuries.

Crandall is active in the Medal of Honor Character Development Program, a middle school and high school curriculum designed to build character and promote responsible citizenship.

He travels the country addressing school assemblies about developing a moral compass and having the courage to do the right thing even when it is not popular.

The West Seattle Grand Parade is sponsored by the Rotary Club of West Seattle.

The medal was presented to Col. Crandall by President Bush in 2007; he retired from the Army with the rank of Lt. Col. but was promoted to Colonel (retired) in 2010.

The parade on Saturday, July 19th, will travel down California SW from The Admiral District to The Junction, usually starting around 11 am. More details as we count down to this year’s parade in the almost-three-weeks ahead!

Yet more highlights from today’s West Seattle Grand Parade. Big cheers for the first-time appearance by a group for whom the parade route was like a walk in the park – Team Tracy, the breast-cancer-fighting 3-Day Walk team led by survivor and superstar fundraiser Tracy Dart. Some walkers sported bras they had decorated at a parade-prep party earlier in the week; the group was accompanied by a motorcycle:

Elsewhere on 2 wheels, Sustainable West Seattle and West Seattle Bike Connections were among the sustainable-transportation advocates who rallied young bicyclists for the first “Kidical Mass” parade ride:

1-wheelers represented, too- the Pathfinder K-8 unicyclists:

Back on 4 wheels, the West Seattle Lions Club had a multiple-vehicle presence, with the lead vehicle, if you look closely, sporting a sign noting that parade day was recently retired service-station proprietor Dick Barnecut‘s birthday (87!):

Some of the most-memorable people were cheering on the sidelines:

At California/Alaska, current West Seattle Hi-Yu royalty cheered past royalty who are competing in the Miss Seafair program this year – Kayli Schulz, representing Hi-Yu, and Victoria Ferrulli, representing the Admiral Neighborhood Association:

Speaking of competing – there were of course politicians – in alphabetical order, we start with King County Executive Dow Constantine, running for re-election but with no opponent actually campaigning:

Running for Seattle mayor, four candidates were in or at the parade – here’s City Councilmember Bruce Harrell:

Incumbent Mayor Mike McGinn wasn’t “in” the parade but was sighted on the sidelines – we didn’t see him but his Twitter account included photos:

State Senator Ed Murray started out marching with the 34th District Democrats and had broken out by the parade’s final section:

And former City Councilmember Peter Steinbrueck campaigned his way down California (we heard him asking spectators “Are you undecided?”):

We should also note that current Councilmembers Richard Conlin and Sally Bagshaw, running for re-election, were here too, as were local legislators accompanying with the 34th.

Our other Grand Parade coverage for this year, and past years, is archived here.

(WSB photos by Katie Meyer)
Every year before the West Seattle Grand Parade, kids get a parade of their own courtesy of the Rotary Club of West Seattle, the Rotary Kiddie Parade. Above, the Junior All-City Band (which trailed the rest of the paraders by a bit today); below, Charlotte led the main group:

Some paraded in costume:

Some in mini-vehicles, too:

Rotarians provided balloons for kids who signed up:

And the Kiddie Parade even drew “royalty”:

This parade travels a shorter route than the Grand Parade – down California from the north end of The Junction (SW Genesee) to the south end (SW Edmunds).

(EDITOR’S NOTE: More Grand Parade reports to be published Saturday night-Sunday morning)

(Thanks to Frank for that photo of part of the Luna Park Café entry, #1 in Commercial)
The list is just in from West Seattle Grand Parade coordinators and judges:

Overall Grand Prize Winners

1st​ – Marysville Strawberry Festival Float

2nd ​- Seattle Schools All-City Marching Band

3rd​ – Calgary Round-Up Band
 
CLOWNS

(From the Seafair Clowns, West Seattle’s own “Officer Lumpy”)
1st​ – Seattle Seafair Clowns
2nd ​- Lake City Western Vigilantes
3rd​ – Keystone Kops
 
PERFORMING ACTS

1st ​- Seafair Pirates

(Photo by Rachel Chaimson)
2nd​ – Joyas Mestizas – Mexican Folk Dance
3rd​ – Pathfinder K-8 School Unicycle Team
 
COMMERCIAL
1st​ – Luna Park Café (see top photo)
2nd​ – Hotwire Coffee
3rd​ – Seattle Public Utilities
 
CARS
1st​ – Last Resort Fire Department
2nd​ – Hope Lutheran School
3rd​ – 1942 LaFrance Fire Truck
 
DRILL TEAMS – JUNIOR
1st ​- Electronette Butterflies

2nd ​- The Princesses of Elegance
3rd​ – Anointed to Praise Drill Team
 
DRILL TEAMS – SENIOR
1st​ – Electronette High Steppers & Drum Corp

2nd​ – Seattle Chinese Community Girls Drill Team
3rd​ – The Ladies of Elegance Drill Team (see them with Princesses of Elegance in clip above)
 
COMMUNITY

1st​ – Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish & School

2nd​ – Cub Scout Pack 793
3rd​ – WestSide Baby – Stuff the Bus (see video here)
 
FLOATS
1st​ – Marysville Strawberry Festival (see video earlier in this story)
 
BANDS

1st​ – Seattle Police Pipe and Drum Corp

2nd ​- Kennedy Catholic High School Marching Band

We’ll continue adding photos and video to this over the course of the weekend, since we have video and/or photos of everyone in the parade! Meantime, our other Grand Parade coverage – from today and from previous years – is archived here.

(Find all our parade coverage in this archive – newest to oldest)

12:49 PM: After almost two hours, the West Seattle Grand Parade is over in the Admiral District, where it begins, and the north part of California SW has reopened to traffic as of a few minutes ago. Final entry is Hotwire Online Coffeehouse (WSB sponsor), with a live band, The Afterthoughts, on board a flatbed tow truck. Lots of great moments before that, too, and we’ll be rolling out highlights for hours to come. (P.S. Hotwire is alongside the courtyard where we hope to see you tonight for the first West Seattle Outdoor Movies presentation of the season!)

1:30 PM: Our crew on the south end of the route reports that the parade has concluded there too.

Meantime, in advance of later reports focusing on parade angles such as the trophy winners, we’re expanding this one to include not only the end of the parade but a few sights from the start!

Above, the West Seattle Hi-Yu float in action (you can also see it in tomorrow afternoon’s White Center Jubilee Days parade and the Seafair Torchlight Parade a week from tonight). Below, a quick maneuver by the Vancouver, B.C., Police Motorcycle Drill Team – in the only Seattle-area parade in which they participate!

10:16 AM: In its second year, the West Seattle Float Dodger 5K is an unquestionable hit – West Seattle Runner (Float Dodger and WSB sponsor) told us that as of earlier this week, registration already had eclipsed the first year’s total turnout, and having just watched the entire crowd pass here at California/Lander, we can verify a bigger crowd.

Our video (top of this story) includes some of the runners around the middle of the pack; we had a crew at the starting line too, and will add much more later – but for now, we’re getting close to West Seattle Grand Parade time!

ADDED 1:49 PM: The results are now available online. Brett Winegar, #720, finished in 16:11, followed by Jeffrey Bigham, #698, in 16:35. First female finisher was Caitlin Latimer, #690, in 19:19; second was Katherine Urbanski, #668, in 20:30. The official results show almost 300 runners!

We’ll be checking with organizers for other winners – best costume, etc.

ADDED 7:51 PM: A very special aspect of today’s Float Dodger 5K was the dedication. As explained on the official website:

This year’s race is dedicated to Andrea Boag, a dear friend of Tim and Lori, owners of West Seattle Runner. On June 10th, she passed away, ending a long battle with cancer. Andrea lives forever in our hearts and this race is in honor of her.

Below, with a poster honoring Andrea, are from left, West Seattle Runner co-proprietor Lori McConnell, Andrea’s sister Sara, her nephew Ethan, and her mom Kristin:

The race’s emcee – leading a moment of silence and the countdown – was KIRO TV’s Michelle Millman, herself a cancer survivor:

Here’s that countdown, and the start of the race:

The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society is a major beneficiary of the Float Dodger 5K, and Tim and Lori also invite donations in honor of Andrea – go here.

8:48 AM: The hundreds of people who’ll be part of the 70-plus entries in today’s West Seattle Grand Parade are getting ready – including West Seattle Hi-Yu volunteers accompanying this year’s float, themed “Alki Deep,” photographed a few minutes ago in the staging area. More parade-prep coverage to come; the parade starts at 11 am, heading south on California from Lander to Edmunds (see the route here; see traffic/bus changes here).
9:22 AM: At the Float Dodger 5K starting line (9:45 am, California/Charlestown), signs of the times:

Note that we’ll be sharing photos via Instagram before, during, and after – see our feed here. Another one – back at the parade’s starting line, co-coordinator Jim Edwards:

A bit of drizzle amid the fog a few minutes ago – but that seems to have stopped (no, wait, there it is again). Think sun – but bring a jacket to start off with!

ADDED 5:35 PM: A few more pre-parade scenes – featuring the Seafair Pirates, who once again came to Merrill Gardens-Admiral Heights (WSB sponsor) for breakfast:

This year’s Captain Kidd – West Seattleite Rusty Harper – shared a table with Hi-Yu royalty:

But before the parade – Moby Duck needed a fill-up, and they went over to Admiral (formerly Barnecut’s) Shell:

Our parade coverage, from today and earlier, is all archived here.

Less than 12 hours to go until the West Seattle Grand Parade, presented by American Legion Post 160, and the Rotary Club of West Seattle‘s Kiddie Parade. (Both follow the Float Dodger 5K, starting at 9:45 am at California/Charlestown, which we previewed last night.) Here are a few more preview notes:

JUNIOR ALL-CITY BAND IN KIDDIE PARADE: Don’t miss the Junior All-City Band in the Kiddie Parade! First we got this reminder from Jeff Clark, principal of Denny International Middle School, which has many ties to Junior ACB:

One of the beautiful things about our school and campus is the creation of cross-age learning opportunities — when kids of different ages have shared experiences, benefitting from cross-age mentoring. Mr. Pimpleton, Band Director for Denny International Middle School, Chief Sealth International High School, and the Seattle Public Schools All-City Band, continues to provide fantastic musical learning opportunities through-out the summer. The Junior All-City Band consists of students from all of our feeder elementary schools and current Denny students performing together — with mentoring from high school and college-age musicians. Thank you to Mr. Pimpleton and all of the volunteers who make Jr. All-City Band possible. I look forward to celebrating their success at upcoming parades! Go current and future Dolphins!

Then, from Marcus Pimpleton himself:

I would really like to highlight the work that John Aguilar has been doing. John is an alumnus of both Denny and Sealth and has participated as a volunteer in all of our Spring and Summer camps. This year he has more or less been running the Junior All-City program and deserves the lion share of the credit for what the students have accomplished this week. He has been assisted by a great group of high school students from a number of different high schools. It has been great kind of taking a back seat and watching these kids work and show what they have learned after all of these years of participating in these programs.

That’s John Aguilar in the photo above. Cheer him and the young musicians on, during the parade!

TEAM TRACY IN GRAND PARADE: Every year they walk for three days to fight breast cancer; in the West Seattle Grand Parade, West Seattleite Tracy Dart and her team will be on their feet for a few hours to encourage you to join the fight.

STUFF THE BUS: WestSide Baby‘s big contingent will be back to remind you that Sunday is the annual mega-diaper drive – although they’ll be doing some advance collecting Saturday afternoon, too, at West Seattle, White Center, and Burien supermarkets – watch our Saturday morning preview for details on that.

HOTWIRE ON THE ROUTE AND IN THE PARADE: Lora Swift from Hotline Online Coffeehouse (WSB sponsor) says, “We are in the parade too – using a GT towing truck for an ‘all American rock n’ roll band’ – The After Thoughts. They will be on the parade route playing on the flatbed of the truck then will loop around and play in the courtyard for a set. We’ll be handing out coupons at Hotwire plus free (while supplies last) organic juice pops for the kids.”

JOINT BASE LEWIS-MCCHORD HONOR GUARD: Parade coordinators told us they’re especially glad to have this honor guard back to lead the parade, since with the “sequester” removing so many military groups from community appearances (think Blue Angels and Navy Seafair Fleet), they weren’t sure whether it would affect this too.

DELRIDGE GROCERY: Organizers and volunteers from the store that’s gearing up to open next year in the under-construction DESC building will be walking in the parade.

POLITICIANS: At least two candidates for mayor will be in the parade, as of this past Monday, when we sat in on part of the parade lineup meeting. In all, as of that meeting, there were five political entries.

And many more (including faves like the cannon-firing Seafair Pirates). Review our previous preview coverage, and previous years, by scrolling through this WSB archive. Better yet, just line the parade route at 11 am and cheer for your neighbors and friends.

(Sustainable West Seattle in 2012 Grand Parade; both WSB photos in this story are by Nick Adams)
We’re counting down to West Seattle Grand Parade day on Saturday, and there are two chances for kids to participate if they’re not already part of an entry.

NEW – KIDICAL MASS: Just announced:

Kids on bikes are invited to ride in the West Seattle Grand Parade July 20th as part of the Kidical Mass this Saturday. Riders of all ages are welcome and kids and families are encouraged to join in the fun.

Kidical Mass is a grass-roots movement to get more kids and families excited about bike riding. Escort your child on their decorated bike as you join Sustainable West Seattle, West Seattle Spokespeople and West Seattle Bike Connections in the parade for this family-friendly ride.

Meet at Alki Bike and Board, 2606 California Ave. SW, to ride in the parade. For more details, contact alkistu@hotmail.com.

The parade starts at 11 am, south on California from Lander, and stages along side streets in advance – so we’d advise meeting at AB&B with plenty of time to spare. Meantime – one more reminder about the other opportunity for kids to participate:

WEST SEATTLE ROTARY KIDDIE PARADE: On foot or on wheels, kids are invited to parade down part of the route, from SW Genesee to SW Edmunds, right before the big parade, with the Rotary Club of West Seattle. Details (and contact info if you have questions) here.

What a sight at Seacrest tonight – Toni shares photos of the All-City Band‘s practice/photo session, with what amounted to a front-row seat. You’ll get to see and hear the All-City Band marching down California SW during Saturday’s West Seattle Grand Parade. The band features musicians from schools around the city, directed by West Seattle’s own Marcus Pimpleton, music leader at Chief Sealth International High School and Denny International Middle School. This summer, as noted here previously, ACB has been practicing right across the street from those two schools, at Southwest Athletic Complex. But tonight, they were at Seacrest:

Their first metro-area parades were last weekend, according to the Friends of ACB Facebook page. And along with upcoming parades, you can also catch the All-City Band and other groups Friday, July 26th, performing at 7 pm at SWAC – free! – in the “Band Jam“ tune-up for the next night’s Seafair Torchlight Parade.

Now back to the West Seattle Grand Parade: It starts at 11 am Saturday, proceeding southbound on California from Lander (north end of Hiawatha) to Edmunds in The Junction; remember that the route, and some side streets used for staging, will be a no-parking zone starting earlier that morning (we noticed the signs are now out), even before the street closure kicks in. The ACB isn’t the only marching band you’ll see – the John F. Kennedy Catholic High School Band from nearby Burien is in the lineup too.

We’re counting down all week to Saturday’s West Seattle American Legion Post 160 Grand Parade (preceded again this year by two events in which you’re welcome to participate BEFORE watching the big parade – the Float Dodger 5K [registration info here] and the Rotary Club of West Seattle Kiddie Parade [participation info here]).

Tonight, parade coordinators – all volunteers – met at Post 160 to rough out the parade lineup. We observed for a while to pick up some tidbits about this year’s parade. For starters: Three far-flung participating groups are among the 70-plus entries. From 700 miles away, the Calgary Roundup Band, which won “Best Marching Band” in this parade two years ago, is returning.

(2011 Sequim float in Grand Parade, framegrab from WSB video)
From 70 miles away, the Sequim Irrigation Festival float will roll down California SW during the Grand Parade for the first time in a few years.

And once again this year, from 140 miles away, the Vancouver (B.C.) Police Motorcycle Drill Team will roar along the parade route, right after SPD’s own drill team.

The parade starts at 11 am Saturday; here’s the route. More previews as the countdown continues all week! And a reminder that tomorrow (Tuesday) night, one of this year’s community honorees, Orville Rummel Community Service Award winner Judy Pickens, will be formally feted during the West Seattle Hi-Yu Concert in the Park, a free event featuring the West Seattle Big Band, 7 pm Tuesday on the east lawn at Hiawatha Community Center/Park.

(WSB photo from 2011 West Seattle Grand Parade)
So apparently this will be a summer without a Seattle 4th of July fireworks show.

A summer possibly without Blue Angels.

But we’ll have the West Seattle Grand Parade – right?

Right?

Well, provided there’s a little help footing the bills, yes. The parade is planned for 11 am Saturday, July 20th, and co-coordinator Dave Vague says:

We are still in our planning stages and have secured a couple of our sponsors from last year, but we are still a little short and are once again asking for the support of the West Seattle Community, who has been so generous in the past and helped us to continue this cherished community event.

Donations can be made at the West Seattle Grand Parade website:

thewestseattleparade.com/Donate.html

If you’re new in town or have missed our coverage of this in recent years, the costs of putting on the parade have continued to go up, and just the barricades/no-parking signs alone cost thousands of dollars. WSB will be donating again this year and we hope that if you can, you will too.

(Our 1st parade report is here; our pre-parade coverage is here)

(WSB video of the All-City Band, top Overall Trophy Winner today)
Just announced by West Seattle Grand Parade coordinators – today’s winners!

Clowns & Comics

1.       Seattle Seafair Clowns
2.       Keystone Kops

Performing Acts

1.       Pathfinder K-8 School (Unicycle Team)
2.       Lake City Vigilantes
3.       Seattle Seafair Pirates

Marching Bands

(Photo by Dan Holz)
1.       Kennedy Catholic High School Marching Band

(This photo and next one by Nick Adams for WSB)
2.       Seattle Seahawks Blue Thunder
3.       Pacific Northwest Drumline (Tie)

3.    Seattle Police Pipe & Drum Band

Drill Teams – Senior

1.       Electronetts High Steppers Drill Team & Drumline
2.       The Dolls Drill Team
3.       Super Steppers Marching Team

Drill Teams – Junior

1.       Electronetts Butterflies Drill Team
2.       Washington Diamonds Drill Team
3.       Daughters of Royalty Drill Team

Cars & Antique Cars

(Photo courtesy Lance Rasmussen)
1.       Pacific Northwest DeLorean Club
2.       Last Resort Fire Department
3.       Seattle Lutheran Schools

Commercial

1.       Your Seattle City Light and the Northwest Tap Connection Dance Team
2.       Luna Park Café
3.       Seattle Public Utilities

Community

(WSB video of part of the OLG parade entry)
1.       Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish & School
2.       Little Gym of West Seattle

(Photo by Nick Adams for WSB)
3.       WestSide Baby

Floats

1.       Marysville Strawberry Festival

Overall Trophy Winners

1.       Seattle Schools All-City Marching Band (see video atop this story)
2.       Chinese Community Girls Drill Team
3.       Sumner High School Marching Band