Annual Bangor festival lights up the downtown

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BANGOR – Oliver was wearing the red jacket with white fringe that is Saint Nick’s traditional garb, but the matching red hat with its white pompom just wouldn’t stay on.

Even so, the wannabe Santa was drawing attention to himself by prancing up and down the sidewalk near the judge’s table downtown while waiting for the start of Bangor Rotary’s annual Festival of Lights Parade on Saturday evening.

Four-year-old Azria Barrett couldn’t keep her hands off the dressed-up black pug from Prospect with a blunt and fuzzy nose.

“She loves him,” her father, Abe Barrett, said Saturday while watching his daughter play with the small puppy.

Azria and her dad, both of Ellsworth, trekked to Bangor just to see the holiday parade.

“We actually saw the Ellsworth one this morning and came up for this one,” he said.

Oliver’s owner, Tara Lee Webster of Prospect, said her grandmother bought the Santa Claus costume for the dog. Webster was at the parade to watch her niece twirl batons with the River City Dance team from Bangor.

The 10-month-old pooch was the only canine dressed up like Santa, but he was not the only pup at the parade.

Several of man’s best friends mingled with the holiday crowd that stretched from the junction of Cedar and Main streets through the center of town to Central Street. A quick survey of the pet owners illustrated that people come from all over to watch Bangor’s winter parade.

Service dog Mato, an 8-year-old golden retriever mix, escorted owner Doug Michaud of Brewer to the parade.

“He’s a therapy dog,” Michaud said while Mato was getting his tummy rubbed by people standing nearby. “He’s my dog for panic attacks. He’s also an old clown.”

Short-statured Lady, a 2-year-old black Labrador, border collie and basset hound mix with big ears that almost touch the ground, stood quietly on Main Street while people milled around her and owner Michael Wellman of Brooks.

Just up the street from Lady was KC, a 9-month-old Chesapeake Bay retriever from Old Town owned by Jay Saucier, who sat obediently near his family watching all the action.

And dog-sitter Terry Parker kept his brother’s overly friendly pup Max, a 3-year-old shepherd and Labrador mix from Dover-Foxcroft, a few feet away from the crowd to prevent Max from jumping on bystanders.

Saturday’s downtown festival, themed “Reaching Out Near and Far,” was launched by a holiday tree lighting ceremony at Pickering Square and was followed by a parade featuring 45 units, including Miss Maine 2005, Megan Beals. A Bangor police cruiser led the parade and it ended with the Fire Department and Santa Claus.

Hundreds of onlookers watched as the Step in Time Cloggers danced their way – without music because of technical problems – into a tie for first place with the Bangor Harley Owners Group, which had no problem making its own noise, for the adult group trophy.

A marching band from Madawaska earned top honors with its performance, which made many standing on the sidewalks march in place, and Bangor Hydro Electric Co., with its huge sleigh, took the commercial entry accolades. The nonprofit entry winner was St. Joseph’s Catholic Church, and the Morgan Hill Dancers, who wowed the crowd and judges with their red-and-white outfits and dancing skills, were the performing entry winners.

Cub Scout Pack 24 of Levant impressed the judges by doing the Cub Scout pledge while dressed in their uniforms to take the youth group trophy.

While the music played and the lights flashed, the pets in attendance at the parade mostly just sat there, including Scout, a 91/2-year-old golden retriever from Nobleboro who came to Bangor with Mike and Sissy Cahill. The Cahills came to Bangor to see their grandson.

“This is the first time [seeing the parade] in Bangor,” Mike Cahill said. “We love it.”

A small toy poodle named Meghan, 10, of Brewer watched the parade while wrapped up in the arms and jacket of owner Karen Sanborn.

“She’s been to the Fourth of July parade, but this is her first Christmas parade,” she said.

Then there was Tilly, 2, a cream-colored pit bull and Australian shepherd mix, who appeared to be wearing a smile while getting pats from parade watchers.

“This is our daily walk,” owner Sarah Barnard of Bangor said. “I didn’t even know this was happening. She loves seeing all the dogs.”

While most of the canines at the parade seemed not to mind the noise, a bashful 11-week-old black Lab puppy named Cody hid behind the legs of owner Aaron Ivers of Hampden while the parade passed.

“This is his first parade, so he’s a little timid,” said the young father of two. “We come here every year.”

Members of the Rotary Club, area city leaders and business representatives judged the parade, while WABI-TV’s Alan Grover and Catherine Pegram were the masters of ceremonies.

“It’s a good parade again that the Rotary Club has put together to bring the Christmas spirit to Bangor, Maine,” Katy Hughes, a parade organizer, said Saturday.