Volunteers Sought for St. Patrick’s Parade in St. Charles

The Downtown St. Charles Partnership seeks volunteers who want to give back to the community and volunteer their time at the St. Patrick’s Parade down Main Street at 2 p.m. Saturday, March 16, 2013.  

A release issued Monday by the partnership states that volunteers are needed for the following areas:

• Parade pacers, ages 18 and older: Assist with crowd control, passing out brochures, keeping spectators out of the street, and pacing the parade entries to eliminate gaps in the parade.
• Banner carriers, ages 13 and older: March down Main Street carrying banners advertising sponsors and participants. Two carriers are needed per banner. Banner carriers may pair up with a friend or family member or allow the volunteer coordinator to pair you with another volunteer.
• General volunteers, ages 15 and older: A variety of extra helpers are needed for such diverse tasks as as helping with the Dog Costume Contest, judging, or general assistance in other areas.
• Parade marshals, ages 16 and older: Help ensure parade entries line up correctly and that each entry steps off in order of the parade lineup.

Volunteers would be required to arrive one to two hours in advance of the 2 p.m. parade. The arrival time depends upon the area of interest. To volunteer, the release asks volunteers to please fill out the volunteer form on the St Patrick’s Parade website, www.downtownstcharles.org/stpats.

An array of entrants will be featured in the 2013 parade, ranging from bands, Irish dancers and authentic Irish music, floats, school groups, preschools, service clubs, and floats. Organizers expect as many as 15,000 will turn out to watch or otherwise participate, according to the release.

In addition to the parade, the St. Charles Veterinary Clinic is sponsoring a Deck out Your Lucky Dog Contest; decorated dogs will be invited to walk in the parade. 

According to the Downtown St. Charles Partnership, McNally’s Irish Pub and the city of St. Charles are the presenting sponsors. Gold sponsors include Advanced Disposal, Onesti Entertainment and the Kane County Chronicle; Bronze sponsors are St. Charles Veterinary Clinic, AHC Advisors and Doc Morgan.

The partnership is offering different levels of sponsorship ranging from $750 to $7,500. Available opportunities are listed on the website at http://www.downtownstcharles.org/stpats.

Organizations and business that wish to participate as a parade entry only must complete an entry form, obtain a certificate of insurance, sign off on the rules and regulations, and return the documents along with the appropriate entrance fee, if required, to the Downtown St. Charles Partnership office no later than Wednesday, Feb. 20, 2013.

The entry fee is $250 for businesses, $125 for Downtown St. Charles Partnership members, and free for nonprofit organizations. Documents are available on the event webpage http://www.downtownstcharles.org/stpats.

For more information, visit www.DowntownStCharles.org, call the Downtown St. Charles Partnership office at 630-443-3967, or email info@downtownstcharles.org.