APPLETON, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) — A summertime tradition in Appleton is back on — tentatively.
Organizers of the Appleton Flag Day Parade say the 70th edition of the celebration will take place June 12.
“By summer, most of Wisconsin could be vaccinated against COVID-19, the disease that in one year has killed more than 6,000 residents and hospitalized more than 26,000,” Appleton Public Health Officer Kurt Eggebrecht said in a news release. “Additionally as vaccination rates increase, we anticipate that our community burden rate of disease will trend downward.”
“The Appleton Parade Committee is encouraged by recent data trends and is optimistic about June 12th,” parade committee chair Corey Otis said in a news release. “We continue to closely monitor COVID-19 data and are proceeding with caution.”
If disease activity rises, the parade will be rescheduled to Sept. 11. An announcement would be made by May 21.
Attendees will be encouraged to take steps to slow the spread of the coronavirus: They are being asked to wear face coverings, physically distance from those outside their households and wash their hands or apply hand sanitizer regularly.
This year’s theme is “Home of the Brave,” honoring hometown heroes during the COVID-19 pandemic. Organizations interested in entering the parade can apply online. The parade is set to step off at 2 p.m. at the corner of Wisconsin Avenue and Oneida Street, proceeding west on Wisconsin Avenue, south on State Street and east on College Avenue, ending at Drew Street.
Appleton touts its Flag Day parade as the nation’s oldest, having first taken place in 1950. Past parades have drawn crowds of as many as 50,000 people, organizers say.
While the Flag Day parade is set to go on in June, Appleton’s Memorial Day parade less than two weeks earlier has been canceled amid the pandemic. The Memorial Day Moment of Remembrance Ceremony will be held virtually and available to watch online. Details will be released on the parade’s Facebook page.
