Fire trucks, horses and handfuls of candy were the highlights for many children watching Sidney’s Santa Claus parade Sunday evening.
The annual Sidney Sparkles Christmas Parade ran down Beacon Avenue starting at 5 p.m. Semi-trucks covered in strings of lights, antique vehicles, and floats carrying live bands made their way down the town’s main drag.
Emma Ree, 6, and her brother Nathan, 8, walked away with tuques filled with candy canes and other goodies.
Their father, Aaron Hines, brings his kids to the event every year. Even though he’s moved away from Sidney, the town’s parade is family tradition.
Hines appreciates how the event brings the community together, because many of those watching know people participating in the parade.
“People usually see each other during the night — that’s the cool part — and they cheer them on,” he said.
Mary Tunbridge and her family cheered extra loudly when their friends, volunteer firefighters in North Saanich, marched by.
The firefighters, tossing chocolate bars to eager children, were some of the last in the parade before Santa Claus himself.
After the parade, some families carried on the Christmas cheer at the waterfront, where lighted boats cruised by.
