Community turns out for annual Barlow Fair Parade
BARLOW — Family, candy and the communion of a neighborhood culminated along the Barlow Fair Parade route Friday night.
“It’s what keeps this community going,” said Lorena Webster, 53, of Vincent. “We see our bank, our grocery store, everyone we know at the parade. We wouldn’t miss this for anything. And it’s just wonderful to have everyone home, my grandkids love it.”
The parade is one of the staples of the Barlow Fair, a tradition that has lasted for 145 years, making the five-day event the oldest independent fair in Ohio. The fair kicked off Thursday and continues through Sunday.
Webster’s daughters came home from across the Ohio River for the parade and brought their children to show support for the Warren High School marching band.
“I was in the band so that’s the best part for me,” said Rachel Grogg, 38, of Parkersburg. “I’ll always be a Warrior at heart.”
“We come back every year,” said Sarah Hart, 31, of Deerwalk. “We come to visit mom and it’s an old-time tradition. We look forward to it.”
The traditional floats from local sports teams, Scout troops and those running for public office streamed along Second Street and turned onto Church Street with candy flying out for the hoards of children to collect.
“My sister is in the parade with the Girl Scouts,” said Rhyder Haga, 8, of Vincent. “So she threw me candy. The best is the gum and the Hershey bars, and the horses too.”
Russ Webster, 59, of Vincent, lives just a few houses down from the route, an easy walk for candy catching.
“Some of these folks you only see every year at the parade,” he said. “That, with the horses and the candy, is the best part.”
And while the children along the route focused on collecting Tootsie Rolls, bubblegum and Nerds, Martin Soprano, 80, of Vincent, was excited to see family.
“This is our 47th parade, we wouldn’t want to be anywhere else,” he said. “My grandson is in Boy Scout Troop 217 and so that was a special treat to see him this year. This is almost heaven.”
For Tammy Schwendeman, 42, of Vincent, the parade was about sharing laughter and time with family. During the parade, she ran out into the oncoming floats to get a photo with one participant dressed as a dinosaur.
“It’s silly but this is what I look forward to every year,” she said. “Once a year everybody comes out and you see people you haven’t talked with in a while. We have a family bonfire afterwards and you just remember what’s important and the people that you love.”
The parade was an opportunity for local organizations to gain visibility.
“Come out to see us,” said Bradley Ebersole, president of Washington State Community College, as he handed out magnets with the college’s logo on them. “We love the Barlow Fair Parade; it’s a great way to remind people that we’re here.”
The Barlow Library used the parade to call attention to its Teen Advisory Board.
“It’s a great program for the kids,” said Mike Hubbard after handing out toys along the route. “I came back home from Georgia to visit and was happy to walk for this.”