Finding Santa at the Marysville Christmas Parade

Dec 11, 2024 09:24AM ● By Shamaya Sutton

Candies, Sugarplum fairies and gingerbread man were heavily featured throughout the 73rd annual Marysville Christmas Parade on Dec. 7 in downtown Marysville. Photo by Chris Pedigo [7 Images] Click Any Image To Expand

MARYSVILLE, CA (MPG) - It was a beautifully clear and relatively windless evening on Saturday, Dec. 7, and exactly 55 degrees at 5 p.m., which was perfect weather for the 73rd annual Marysville Christmas Parade.

Crowds gathered on either side of D Street and lines flowed out onto the sidewalk from both The Brick and Edible Memories Bakery for a last-minute caffeine pick-me-up.

“Last night was the biggest it's been,” said Skip Bertsch as he tended to his outdoor stage. “The city did the Christmas tree lighting on Friday night, our band actually played last night, which is a Trans-Siberian Orchestra tribute with the laser light show, but with Candy Cane Lane doing their thing that same night, we just had a huge crowd. It was amazing.”

This year’s parade theme centered around “The Nutcracker,” a fairytale ballet based on short stories written in the 1800s. Classic characters include a mischievous Mouse King, a Sugar Plum Fairy, a mysterious magician named Drosselmeyer, a young child heroine named Clara and, of course, the Nutcracker prince. With close to 90 entries, the parade lasted nearly two hours from start to finish with blinding lights and horns tooting throughout. The judges had their work cut out selecting winners to place in eight categories. Meanwhile, Robert Fischetti and Gary Jensen of 93Q kept the crowds entertained with humorous banter as they announced each entry.

“I love the marching bands,” said Fischetti. “Some of the cars were pretty cool too.

Marysville resident Amanda Huisman decided the school floats were her favorite this year but for her son, Jacob, it was all about Santa Claus.

“He's here to see Santa, he waits all year to see Santa. He actually wants to be Santa when he gets older,” said Huisman. “He's got autism so that's all he thinks about.”

Nine-year-old Jacob sat dejectedly on the bench beside her and made a remark of annoyance with his hands. His mother explained that he uses sign language to supplement his speech delay and that he was frustrated Santa hadn’t shown up for pictures yet. They had been waiting patiently by the city’s Christmas tree at the corner of 3rd and D Street, but as the minutes ticked by, Jacob became increasingly more distraught. His mother worried that their night might take a sour turn if they couldn't find Santa.

“The weird thing is when I was growing up, I did not like Christmas,” said Huisman. “My grandpa died three days before my 18th birthday and he goes, ‘You watch, you’re gonna have a kid that loves Christmas.’ And I guess he cursed me. There was one time I had to leave our own tree up for three years, Jacob wouldn't let me take it down.”

It was beginning to look bleak for the Huismans until a well-intentioned parade attendee, dressed like an elf, stepped in to find old Saint Nick. A few moments later, Santa rounded the corner from Edible Memories Bakery with a jolly “Merry Christmas.” Jacob burst into tears of joy as he embraced his red-clad hero. The two posed for pictures before sending Santa on his way back to the North Pole. Before leaving, Jacob made one more brief motion with his hand toward his chest.

“You made his heart very happy,” Huisman translated. “Thank you.”

Marysville Christmas Parade Winners

Judging results for the 2024 Marysville Christmas Parade held on Dec. 7, submitted by parade coordinator Kary Hauk are below.

High School Band

First-Place: Marysville Charter Academy for the Arts

Second-Place: River Valley High School Band

Intermediate School Band

First-Place: Andros Karperos

Elementary School Band

First-Place: Edgewater School Cheer/Band

Floats (Best Lighting)

First-Place: Browns Valley 4-H