BUCKFIELD – All roads led to Buckfield Monday for the annual Labor Day parade. The clouds parted to give hundreds of viewers a parade filled with sunshine, bands, sirens and happy children rushing about to catch a piece of candy being thrown by the float riders.

The annual parade started some 30 years ago by the Recreational Committee. Merriel Perry was a part of that original committee along with Mary Wiley, Ray Miclon, Dick Pope and Tom Boyd.

The Buckfield John D. Long American Legion Post 58 led by Commander Richard Pope brought the parade down Route 140 from the high school onto Main Street or Route 219 where it traveled to the Municipal Center.

The parade had something for everyone to enjoy. There were vintage cars, tractors, steam roller, followed by Lewiston’s Kora Temple Krazy Cops in their tiny cars, kids on bikes, candidate floats, the Leavitt Area High School band, Northeast Bank Christmas float with tellers dressed as presents, Pine Tree Chapter No. 33 celebrating their 45th birthday with cake float complete with a girl in the cake, Girl and Boy scouts of Buckfield, Red Neck Rescue float and at least a dozen fire engines with sirens blaring. There were participants from Turner, Buckfield, Sumner and Hebron. The animal control brought up the end of the parade with a horse-drawn streetcar, wagons and several riders.

Mable Dunn was present in her craft booth where she has been for the last 10 parades. She was celebrating her 83rd birthday surrounded by handcrafted items all created by her hand. She said, “I love Buckfield. I wouldn’t live anywhere else.”

The Buckfield Community Church Youth Group were raising money from baked goods for clean water in Africa under the Blood Water Mission and justice for children to help abolish child sex trafficking and exploitation of children. The organization is called Justice for Children International. Sharon Workman is the group leader.

Other booths included free kid identification with fingerprinting and videos by the Masons of Maine, cloth gift bags by Kathy Demers of Auburn, games sponsored by Faith Bible Chapel of Buckfield, Jewelry by Lisa Weld of Wells, Streaked Mountain Wood Carvers showing beautiful work done on the bark of cottonwood trees and food for all. Crowds moved around eating hamburgers or pie as the Damaged Goods Band from Lewiston/Auburn entertained.

There was a large collection of antique automobiles on display, ranging from Paul Harkanson’s 1925 Model T truck to classics from the 50s and 60s.

Henry Jones of Oxford and Daytona Beach, Fla., exhibited his beautifully restored 1928 AR Model A Ford. This was the first Model A brought to Oxford by Ripley and Fletcher. It was used as a “demonstrator” until it was sold to A. J. Twitchell. It was subsequently passed on to Oscar Twitchell, who sold it to Jones in 1974.

Mark McGhee of Sumner displayed his 1950 GAZ 69. The Russians manufactured this Jeep-like model from 1945 through 1972 and distributed it widely throughout the world. McGhee, who was in the service when the Berlin Wall fell, purchased his from the former East German police. Reportedly, it had been used in the police convoy that escorted Garry Powers when he was returned from Soviet custody. The vehicle was well-equipped with military paraphernalia such as a Mosin-Nagant World War II sniper rifle.

Several antique gasoline engines and assorted old mechanical equipment were on display. Tom Thompson had his 1940 Fairbanks Morse model Z 2 horsepower engine running a series of jack shafts and pulleys connected by leather belts. Thompson is a perennial favorite at the Oxford County education day where he uses the rig to teach principals of physics.