Cover story: A celebrated tradition: May Day parade Cover story: A celebrated tradition: May Day parade (May 05, 2004)

With the arrival of May Day in Woodside, out come the costumes, the pony carts, the western wear and the handfuls of candy to throw to the little ones along the way.

By David Boyce
Almanac Staff Writer

A rose is a rose, it is said. So, too, with parades. Big or small, they are celebrations of people -- often with their animals -- moving down a street to music, or at least to a regular step, or sometimes just going in the same general direction on a closed street. And on the sidelines are more people, usually many more people than in the parade, watching it all unfold.

Such was the scene at Woodside's 82nd annual May Day parade, which happened to fall on May 1 this year. Kids, parents, friends and relatives spent Saturday morning sitting and standing in mottled sunshine along the quarter-mile stretch of Highway 84 between Woodside Elementary School and Roberts Market, the parade's two end points. At the market, the parade turned around and came back down the street so everybody could get a second look.

There was much to recognize from years past. Horsemen from the Sheriff's Office led the affair and a red fire engine from the Woodside Fire Protection District brought up the rear. Among the acts in between were two kids in a comedic brown horse suit, the Woodside High School marching band with baton twirlers and a drum major, Shetland ponies pulling children in little carts, old brightly painted vehicles with amusing horns, and -- a regular feature of this parade -- the pelting of observers with candy.

The theme this year -- the Olympic spirit -- was in evidence, but not overdone. Five kids marching together carried five colored rings in formation to symbolize the Olympic logo. A few marchers carried made-up torches and small plastic flags of other countries. A martial arts class, dressed in white, did routines to a recording of the Temptations singing "Cloud Nine." In keeping with the international flavor, three men wearing liederhosen tossed candy as they wheeled around on Segways -- the battery-powered scooters.

There were Girl Scouts, the 4H club and guide dogs -- including some rambunctious puppies. Woodside eighth-graders gave an a cappella performance of the song "Anything" from the musical "Oliver."

The Los Trancos Woods Community Marching Band was in fine form, as usual, playing tunes in a sophisticated Dixieland style and wearing silly costumes that belied their talent.

After the parade, 200 to 300 people reassembled in the open-air amphitheater behind the school to witness the naming of the citizen of the year -- parent and PTA member Michelle Stanley -- and to watch Woodside third-graders perform the traditional sword and May pole dances.

Carnival games and lunch on the grass brought the day to a close.

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