Olive Blair is one of the many volunteers involved in this year’s Westport Lions Santa Claus parade.
Westport Lions Roar
By Lion Bob Reddick
It takes a great team to make good things happen in our community. That’s what makes the Westport Lions so special. Working together brings out the best in club members and community volunteers and making great ideas possible.
Olive Blair, daughter of Scott and Stacy Blair, is part of the team of volunteers that are involved in this year’s Westport Lions Santa Claus parade. Olive was recruited by her Great Uncle, Lion Dave Blair, to create posters for the food bank parade wagon. Dave is aware of Olive’s artistic talents, so he thought he would get her to help him out in decorating the food bank wagon. What a great idea to get young people involved in the parade and hopefully in the future events.
Teamwork between our members, volunteers, and community sponsors will always be one of the club’s greatest strengths. It allows us to take on more challenges and provide greater service to our community.
One of the great benefits of being a Lion is that you always have members and volunteers that are willing to form a team to get things done. Although my focus is on Lion activities and events, there are many teams in our community working together to make Westport and the area a better place to live. Take a minute to reflect on all the groups or teams that have a goal to make our community better. Together we can do so much.
It takes a great team effort to organize the Westport Lions Santa Claus parade. Chief parade organizer, Lion Marty Hawkins said there will be “at least 47 units in the parade.” “The support of local businesses has been awesome,” says Marty, “The club is so proud to do this for the community.”
Before the parade starts, Mr. Willis will provide Christmas music downtown for your enjoyment from 10:00 a.m. until 2:00 p.m. Mr. Willis’s music has helped to create a festive atmosphere before the parade for more than 30 years.
The parade will start at 2:00 p.m. and begin at the Circle K/Esso Station. This year’s parade theme is an Old Country Western Christmas, and the parade judges will be Betty McInnis, Judy Pattinson, and Kathy Suffel.
The parade will proceed down Concession St. to Rideau St., follow Main St. until The Cove, then turn left on to Bedford St. At the Westport Village Pharmacy, the parade will turn left on to Church St. At the end of Church St., it returns to Rideau St. and Concession and then back to the Esso. The parade route gives ample room for people to spread out along the route. This will ensure young people get the best view and is more fun for the parade participants.
As in past years, Lion members will be collecting non-perishable food for the food bank and unwrapped toys for the toy drive. Cash donations will be accepted for both charities.
On Friday, November 25, a pride of Lions will be at the Christmas market selling a limited number of 2023 cash calendars and Christmas cakes and giving out hot chocolate. In the evening, Lions will attend the Westport Rideaus game to collect food and donations for the local food bank and enjoy some great hockey.
Come out and enjoy the many festive activities happening this weekend in Westport!
Westport Lions Club 