BLADENBORO — On Saturday, the town of Bladenboro will host the 36th annual Christmas parade with more than 115 entries. This is the only continuous Christmas parade in Bladen County and, for 36 years, Jane Walters of the Abbottsburg Community has volunteered her talents and time to make sure the parade marches on.

“It all began, the Christmas Parade, in 1973 when me and Sue Thompson Galloway led a group of little girls as the Brownie Scout Troop 491,” Walters said. “We would take the girls to resthomes for some of their field trips and to many of the area churches. Both of our daughters were in the Brownie Troop, my little girl Beth was 5 at the time and Sue’s daughter Amanda was 4. During one of their meetings they asked the group of girls, which had grown to about 15, what did they want to do for their next project? One of the little girl’s reply to us was ‘we should have a Christmas parade in Bladenboro.’ Well, the rest is history. 

The first Christmas parade consisted of a Bladenboro Police car, Mayor Charles Hasbrouck’s car, the First Baptist Church made a float and the local fire truck. Brownies Troop 491 were the leaders of the parade.

“Back then we started the parade where the Pig ‘n’ Chicken restaurant was located — now Pleasant Pizza occupies that location,” Walters said. “We would start at the restaurant and end at the Police Department/Town Hall.” 

The extended group of parade volunteers met Monday night at the Bladenboro Police Department’s conference room to iron out the parade lineup that has grown tremendously over the years. Walters and Galloway’s daughter, Amanda Sykes, leads the group of volunteers through the last-minute details of the parade, blocking streets, getting the lineup corrected and announcing newcomers to the parade. Those attending the Monday night meeting were Joyce Brisson, Toni Shipman, Greg Sykes and the Rev. Kevin Kinlaw. The special treat for the night was a return visit by Sue Thompson Galloway. 

Galloway and Walters reminisced about the beginning years of the parade, and now Galloway’s daughter, one of the original little Brownies, is helping with the parade along with her husband, Greg Sykes. Galloway moved to Whiteville in 1991 and was unable to continue with the planning of the parade. 

Walters’ daughter, Beth Schultz, works behind the scenes making sure the flyers get out to the public in as early as September.

Edgar Evans, Elias and Margaret Pigford and Rev. Kinlaw’s father, Clifton Kinlaw, helped with the organizing of the parade during those early years. 

Over the years Walters and Galloway also started a church youth group and took then to different places for the sake of their children and other children their age. 

“We’ve done what any parent would do for their little girls and/or their children. Sometimes children can see the need for something and events in our small part of the world, that we can’t see or even imagine,” said Walters. “In 1973 we would never have thought the parade would have ever come this far, but it has, and I hope it continues.”