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Wednesday, April 18, 2007
What’s missing from the Snellville parade? Elementary schools!
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
I love parades.
I have for decades — ever since shivering in my Mary Janes and soaking up the drumbeats of the Christmas procession in my hometown.
When I moved to Snellville in the ’80s, the city helped me rekindle that affair.
The Snellville Days Parade was big. Each year, on the first Saturday in May, the City of Snellville blocked off Main Street (aka U.S. 78) to make way for the event. The street closing was reason enough for every able-bodied person to grab a lawn chair and come out. For a brief and shining moment, cars had to detour a few blocks while the townspeople took over the road.
Highway officials eventually nixed the closing of U.S. 78. Metro Atlanta had become too busy to slow down. But Snellville charted a new course, and the parade marched on.
Lately though, something has been missing. Elementary schools, once a mainstay of the parade, are nowhere to be seen. None entered a float in last year’s parade. As of Wednesday, none had registered for next month’s.
Shannon Campbell, program supervisor for Snellville Parks and Recreation, said elementary school participation seemed to end about four years ago, “We’d love to have the schools involved” she said.
The lack of participation is a dramatic departure from the 1990s (and a few years in the early 2000s), when elementary school parents and kids would spend weekends and afternoons hammering lumber, stuffing tissue paper into chicken wire and learning song or dance routines for the march through town. W.C. Britt, J.C. Magill and Norton Elementary were regular contenders in the float competition.
Some years, the work generated impressive, elaborate creations. Some years, the entries were more basic. But it was always a big event.
When my children began school in Snellville, I joined the PTA, attended meetings and open houses and volunteered for projects. But it was the time spent decorating the school float where I really got to know other parents and kids.
My children, now in high school and college, told me recently that some of their best memories are of working on the Snellville Days floats.
I know parades are not on the list of elementary school responsibilities. I understand why PTAs might bow out. Building a float requires time, money and energy. You must borrow a trailer, beg for a place to house it, find a willing, generous soul with woodworking skills, come up with a design, buy materials, spread the word, find a driver, organize, organize, organize.
April and May are tough times for schools and families. There are end-of-the-year activities and athletic events, These days, there is also school testing to worry about. Schools can’t schedule events that keep children out the nights before tests.
There’s always the weather, too, which can dampen all efforts.
It’s enough to make anyone throw up his hands.
I just hate to see it happen. My family gained a lot from working on Snellville Days floats. In today’s buzzwords, you could label the lessons as “community building,” “working as a team” or “teaching citizenship” — all while stuffing tissue paper and having fun.
It’s a shame to see the tradition vanish.
Has the Snellville Days Parade played a part in your life?
For information about the Snellville Days festival and parade, go to www.snellvilledays.com.
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