
by Lorie Lewis Ham
Just like the City of Reedley, Sanger is getting creative with their Christmas parade this year and doing a reverse parade. We chatted with Tammy Wolfe, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Sanger District Chamber of Commerce to learn more.

by Lorie Lewis Ham
The pandemic has changed a lot of things, including how we celebrate the holidays. Many places are finding creative ways of still being able to enjoy the things we love and be safe. The Reedley Chamber of Commerce got creative with this year’s Fiesta Parade by doing what they called a reverse parade, and now they are doing it with the Electric Light Parade as well. We chatted with Chamber Director Erik Valencia to learn more.

by Lorie Lewis Ham
It’s that time of year again, time for Reedley’s biggest event of the year-the Reedley Fiesta! Executive Director of the Chamber of Commerce Erik Valencia took a moment out of his preparations to chat with us about this year’s event, which takes place on October 10-12.

by Mallory Moad
Of all the days I’ve spent watching parades this year, December 5 was the most challenging – it was a Christmas parade double-header! That’s right, I attended two very different parades in one day and lived to tell you all about it.

by Mallory Moad
There are three more parades on my schedule – let the countdown begin! On December 12 I headed south on 99 once again, this time to the tiny town of London. If you’re confused, it’s London, California I’m talking about. I’d be willing to bet most Central Californians have never heard of this community of 2500, located 20 miles southeast of Kingsburg and nestled in the middle of acres of vineyards, peach and nectarine orchards and citrus groves.

by Mallory Moad
Christmas is on the way, and Central Valley towns are getting into the spirit of the season with parades, parades, and more parades! Last weekend I attended three in a row, each representing the values and histories of the communities in which they took place.

by Mallory Moad
“Welcome to Selma, Raisin Capital of the world!” That’s where I was on an unusually warm Halloween, waiting for the start of the 51st Annual Selma Rotary Marching Band Festival Parade. I’d really been looking forward to this, because not only do I love parades, I’ve got a thing for marching bands, too. This was going to be awesome! Bring ’em on!

by Mallory Moad
Once a year Fresno’s Tower District goes to the dogs – in a good way – and this time I was there to see it with my own eyes.

by Mallory Moad
The cheery voice on the PA wished us “Valkomen!” and invited us to “celebrate mid-summer, Swedish style!” I was in the picturesque town of Kingsburg and that’s exactly what I planned on doing.

by Mallory Moad
In 1964, Barbra Streisand had a hit song in which she declared that nobody was gonna rain on her parade. Had Babs been in Clovis in 2015, she would have been disappointed. The 98th Annual Clovis Rodeo Parade was the third on my list of parades to see this year, and it was a wet one. A steady downpour made the cancellation of this popular event a definite possibility. But this is Clovis, rough and tough, a way of life! The show must go on! So, appropriately attired in boots, cowboy hat, and red raincoat, I staked out my place deep in the heart of Old Town.

by Mallory Moad
Gung hay fat choy! It’s the Year of The Ram, and he was honored, curly horns and all, with his very own parade in Fresno’s Chinatown. The 15th Annual Fresno Chinatown Chinese New Year’s Parade was the second on my list of parades to see in 2015.

by Margaret Mendel
This year will be the 87th Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade and it is the biggest annual event NYC has to offer. Millions of people line the streets to see this amazing display, while even more people view the parade on TV. It is a spectacular event that officially brings Santa Claus to town, and when the merchants begin to cry out to the public, “Let the shopping begin!”

by James Garcia Jr.
Ever wonder how the Kingsburg Swedish Festival got its start? As stated in the official Chamber of Commerce pamphlet from this year’s Festival, in 1924, a group of women from the Concordia Lutheran Church presented a mid-summer festival for residents of the Concordia Home, a retirement home located near the present Kingsburg Hospital.

by James Garcia Jr.
Most residents of Kingsburg know there are a handful of events that are important to the City of Kingsburg, and more specifically to the downtown. If the Swedish Festival is number one, then the Santa Lucia Day celebration might be next.