By DON FLETCHER
News Staff Writer
Last Saturday, for the third time in two weeks, Atmore’s downtown area was virtually crawling with local residents and out-of-towners as Atmore Area Chamber of Commerce’s annual Twilight Christmas Parade drew a crowd estimated by Police Chief Chuck Brooks as “about 5,000.”
The mass of humanity crowded three- and four-deep along downtown sidewalks from Ridgeley Street to the 200 block of South Main Street. Hundreds more stood or sat in yards or on porches farther down South Main, and in parking lots along Lindberg Avenue, the parade’s final leg.
The crowd began assembling more than an hour before the holiday caravan’s scheduled starting time. Parents chased rambunctious children, friends touched base with each other, and the spirit of Christmas filled the air.
“We had a really good crowd,” said Addison Long, the Chamber’s interim director. “There were a lot of new faces in the crowds. It really went well.”
Those new faces included Frisco City residents Sarah, Jasmine, Lawrence, Jaxon and Jordon Bennett, accompanied by Lloyd Hunter, who heard from a family member that the parade was worth the 30-plus-mile trip.
“We’re already having a good time,” Sarah Bennett said as the parade kickoff was still a half-hour away. “We have some relatives here, and they told us how good last year’s parade was, so here we are.”
Khadijah Lee of Atmore witnessed the annual holiday spectacle from the corner of Main and Church streets with her husband, Joshua, and sons Hezekiah (3) and Zacharia (2). She said the only thing she didn’t enjoy about the parade was trying to keep her oldest son from becoming a part of it.
“He’s always running out there, trying to get on the floats,” she laughed.
Children and adults scrambled for candy, beads and small toys tossed from the various parade participants. One family even set up two large, inverted umbrellas to help catch the goodies, and one young lady of about age 3 ignored the candy landing around her, instead making sure to yell “Merry Christmas” to each float as it passed.
A sudden quiet fell over city streets for what seemed an interminable time but was only about 10 minutes, when a freight train cut the parade into two parts. Another train had delayed the start by just a few minutes.
“There’s nothing we can do about it,” the chamber director shrugged. “It’s just part of Atmore.”
The parade itself featured 83 floats or decorated trailers, including half a dozen firetrucks from area departments. More than a dozen individual walkers, numerous classic cars and duos holding club or business banners also took part in the caravan.
For the first time in at least two years, the parade included horses. Bringing up the rear were several cowboys and cowgirls who followed two horse-drawn wagons.
And, of course, there was Santa, who rode on a float sponsored by First National Bank & Trust.
Rolin Septic LLC’s float was awarded first place, while Poarch Creek Indians (PCI) Facilities (first place in the Poarch parade on Friday) was second, and PCI Housing (second at PCI) was third in Atmore. (PCI’s Tribal Gaming Commission float took third place in the Poarch parade.)
“Except that it was so long, with the trains and all, it was one of the best I’ve been to,” said Jeremy James of Nokomis. “They always do it up right in Atmore.”
