More than 1,000 uniformed soldiers, police officers and firefighters from across Maine are scheduled to march down Portland’s Congress Street next month accompanied by a shower of ticker tape.
The April 8 parade is to be part of a weekend-long celebration called “A Heroes’ Welcome.”
“It’s going to be huge,” said organizer Liz Darling, the city of Portland’s marketing and promotions manager. “It might be the biggest thing we’ve ever done.”
The immediate aim was to applaud the soldiers who have served in Iraq, including the recently returned men and women of the 133rd Engineer Battalion, which numbers about 500 soldiers.
However, the celebration hopes to recognize a much wider group, too.
Soldiers from every conflict, as well as police and firefighters, are being invited to march in the parade. They are to be joined by the Air Force’s 75-piece marching band. The parade route will take them the short distance from Congress Square to Monument Square.
Private donors have promised super-sized yellow ribbons to decorate the route and 40,000 American flags to give to attendees.
At the parade’s Monument Square destination will be two stages and a Jumbotron. There will be bands, speeches and a variety of surprises, Darling said.
It’s a project that has been growing for weeks, said Darling, who works in the city’s Economic Development office.
From a practical point of view, the event comes at a time of year when there are few festivals or high profile projects under way. The weather is typically warmer, yet hotels have vacancies.
The parade and the weekend events that will follow are the first large-scale celebrations planned by a Maine city or town for the soldiers who served in Iraq.
“I think it’s a wonderful idea,” said Phil Nadeau, Lewiston’s assistant city administrator.
Nadeau, who first learned of the parade Tuesday, said he knew of no official event being planned by either Lewiston or Auburn.
Meanwhile, at Camp Keyes in Augusta, officials were trying to arrange for a helicopter flyover of the parade.
The guard will hold its own welcome for the troops of the 133rd in late May or early June, after the soldiers have had three months or so to adjust to being back home, said Maj. Peter Rogers, spokesman for the Maine Army National Guard.
Darling hopes the event will draw thousands of military people, whether they have served in Iraq or are veterans of past wars. To that aim, events are to be held after the Friday parade and through the next Sunday.
Special tie-ins are planned with both the Portland Pirates and the Portland Sea Dogs.
Meanwhile, several area hotels have agreed to rent rooms to people with military identification at reduced rates.
More information is available at the city of Portland’s Web site at www.portlandmaine.gov.
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