By Toni Schneider
Correspondent
There were many green, hairy Grinches in the “Whoville Christmas in Burlington Parade” on Friday night, sponsored by the Burlington Chamber of Commerce.
Their hands looked cold and clammy but the large crowd that lined both sides of the streets of the parade route appeared to love them anyway.
Fire engines, police and rescue vehicles started things off with lights, sirens and horns blaring. The Grinches didn’t steal the Christmas spirit from this crowd, as “oohs” and “ahhs” could be heard while bright-colored floats, decorated trucks, dancers and gymnasts made their way along the downtown city streets.
Some of floats were filled with packages and boxes decorated with bows and garland. Two live reindeer – that did not have red noses and were not named Rudolph – went by, but they did get the attention from some of the children who took a time out from catching candy to get a closer look.
Unlike Mayor Augustus in the “Grinch” movie, who offered to give away a new car at the taxpayers’ expense, Burlington Mayor Jeannie Hefty offered a great big smile and a wave with no strings attached as she drove by.
No matter how different each float appeared they were all designed to provide holiday cheer.
One of them featured a red sleigh filled with gifts and sign on the back that had a classic line from the movie: “Maybe Christmas doesn’t come from a store. Maybe Christmas, perhaps, means a little bit more.”
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