Houlton’s parade draws folks from far and near

Somewhere the sun was shining on the Fourth of July, it just wasn’t Houlton. Even though it poured off and on throughout the parade route it didn’t really dampen the nostalgia of being in Houlton for the holiday. Participants on the floats thought there were as many if not more than if it had been a good day. The sidewalks and streets were peppered with every color umbrella you could imagine. Most floats were rain-proof.  Gone are the days of crepe paper streamers and tissue rosettes made famous at the Houlton High School Circus Parades.
    Romain Ouellette of Littleton usually provided his team of horses to pull the antique steam pumper from the Houlton Fire Department, but this year his team was a bit too young, so luckily he knew Pete Stratton from Pittsfield who was coming to the fair to enter his draft horses and Stratton agreed to fill in. His beautiful black Percheron horses were even more beautiful in the rain with their sleek black coats.
First place in the agricultural float division went to the Southern Aroostook Agricultural Museum  “All in a Day’s Work” theme. The front of the float displayed a beautiful Studebaker wagon on loan from the Malone family in Bridgewater and can be seen in the Carl and Helen Hagan barn at the museum in Littleton. Volunteers dressed in period clothing demonstrating the many talents of the farm wife, which included, quilting, knitting, rug-making and sewing. They even had a couple of wanna-be farmers assisting them.
Dunn Furniture had the right idea with their-first place award in the commercial float category. They created the ship, SS La z y Boy.
Bob and Jane Bartlett of Littleton are into collecting and it is no small potatoes. They collect Massey Ferguson tractors and travel around the United States to purchase just the right ones. The drivers were all dressed in red shirts and caps. Jane drove the last one in the line of a dozen followed by a flatbed displaying four smaller tractors with some of the Bartlett children, grandchildren and friends taking part. The Bartletts won in the tractor division.
Although recently retired Southside band director Paul LaPointe had offered to lead the students one more time, the weather prevented them from participating, but McGill’s pulled through playing their repertoire of patriotic songs while riding on the back of a truck. They took the Chairman’s Choice award for the day.
Every parade has horses, but Houlton’s parade sported a   pooper-scooper contingent led by Pastor Randall Burns and members of the Church in Action group catching and scooping the gifts left along the way. Serving the people of Houlton is sometimes done in a non-traditional fashion. They scoffed up the first-place award for the best walking group.
Healthy Aroostook partnering with the Houlton Elementary School had some delicious looking live fresh fruits and vegetables walking the parade route.
The Disney characters were a big hit with the little ones. Isabel Cyr of Rockland couldn’t wait until Snow White came along.
Several visiting queens rode in open cars, members from the American Legion Post 47 and several veterans also participated. There were smashup derby cars, fire trucks and antique cars.
Once the parade ended, there were a few more downpours during the day, but the midway was packed and it made just the right substance for the mudruns and the fireworks went off without a hitch.
People that didn’t attend activities in town held family reunions and barbecues in back yards and at the lakes. Several visitors were in town to attend either the class of 1954, 1979 and 1989 class reunions.
One such Houlton High alumnus, Kelly Burlock Palaima, Class of 1979 came back to Houlton with her husband Ben and daughter Rachel bringing a couple of her girlfriends from the San Fransisco area. Palaima laughed and said her husband changes his name to Burlock when he comes to Houlton, it just makes it easier to explain who he knows and why he’s here.
The Cui family from Fredericton, N.B. travel back and forth each day to take in all the events. This is the third year they have come and they love it. The kids participate in many of the contests at Community Park and of course they look forward to the fireworks.
Houlton can be very proud of the Houlton Fair Association, Houlton Chamber of Commerce and the many civic groups that join together year after year to provide a variety of events for hometown people and those from away. Don’t forget to thank these organizers when you see them, remember they gave up the holiday weekend of relaxation to provide this hometown tradition for you and your family.