Spryfield marks 50th annual Santa Claus Parade

The Halifax community of Spryfield is marking a milestone this weekend with its 50th annual Santa Claus parade.

Organizers say the event began with the Lions Club and has grown year after year.

"For me, it's all about the children," said Nina Gray, a co-chair of the parade who has been volunteering with the event for nearly 30 years. "My favourite thing is seeing the kids' faces as we go down the road."

The daytime parade is always held on the last Sunday of November at 2 p.m. AT.

Gray said she has a lot of great memories of the event over the years, and the one that stands out most involved Santa.

"I think we ended up having Santa Claus on the fire truck, which unfortunately got called to go out on duty," Gray said. "I always travel behind the parade in my vehicle.... My vehicle ended up taking Santa the rest of the way.... We had to haul him off the float."

Bruce Holland, another co-chair, said during the COVID-19 lockdown, they still managed to hold the parade, though they had to do it a little differently to comply with the rules at the time.

"We actually had Santa on the back of the float. And he went around through the community. People came out on the sidewalk and waved," Holland said.

Gray said preparing for the next parade usually begins after the last one ends, though applications for groups to participate usually go out in October. She said she expects around 50 entrants this time around and a larger turnout than usual along Herring Cove Road.

"We do see a packed house," she said, adding that social media has also helped drive turnout. "Some people maybe moved out of the community, [but] we'll see them back in for this parade."

Lee Rodgers remembers watching the parade as a child and marching in it as a cadet. He is now on the parade committee.

He grew up in Spryfield and says the 50-year milestone says a lot about the strength to the area.

"Spryfield gets a bad rap everywhere and I think [the parade] shows the support, the love, the commitment to each one of us in the community that we support each other," he said. "And there's a lot more good in this community than there is bad.

"And I'm just not talking about Spryfield, but the surrounding areas, the Sambro Loop, they all get involved with this and that's a staple that, at 50 years, it's still going. COVID couldn't even shut us down."

Rodgers says he's looking forward to this year's parade.

"Let's just say I'm at the end of the parade in a certain attire that you may recognize.... We're gonna have some great weather and celebrate 50 years of this parade. I'm so excited about it," he said.

The event will be livestreamed on Nova Scotia Live TV.

The Halifax Regional Municipality said in a news release that people can expect traffic delays through the parade route, which begins on Punch Bowl Drive, heading south to Herring Cove Road, then onto Dentith Road and ending at the Spryfield Mall.

Halifax Regional Police will escort the parade, which runs from 2 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.