MARYSVILLE – About 75,000 people attended the Marysville Strawberry Festival Grand Parade June 20, event organizers said.
More than 110 groups participated in the parade.
The float from Port Townsend won the Sweepstakes Award as the best overall float in the competition.
Several onlookers made sure to reserve their spots as early as they could.
John and Melinda Lins-Morstadt were joined by Aaron and Lauren Stenson, as well as Karla Morrison in the flatbed of a 1972 Chevy pickup that accommodated not only their seats, but also a cooler full of food and beverages.
“We parked it here yesterday morning at 9 a.m.,” John Lins-Morstadt said, as he and his companions sat just across the street from Comeford Park. “This parking lot was totally empty.”
Although he joked they’d left their fire pit at home, their cooler was packed with sandwiches, chips, pickled okra and sodas.
“I’ve attended twenty years of parades here, so I believe in being prepared,” Lins-Morstadt said. “They’ve really done a wonderful job with the city’s downtown to make it inviting for events like this. Just look at the Spray Park and the new restrooms. Kids can play around and get cleaned up until before the parade starts.”
Meanwhile, Lily Maynard rolled off with the overall prize for the Strawberry Festival Kiddies Parade by reflecting this year’s theme of “Berried Treasure.”
Lily, 3, donned a strawberry red dress to sit in an opened pirate-style treasure chest full of shiny toy coins and other plastic loot.Lily’s grandma, Bonnie Maynard, explained that it took about 16 hours to prepare their entry, working up to three hours after work for five days.
“The hardest part was making the frame for the treasure chest, since the PVC tubes had to meet at odd angles,” Maynard said.
Sisters Juliana, 8, and Savannah Ponjavic, 4, took first place in the “floats” category for their pirate ship, complete with mast and sail. Parents Joe and Brittany Ponjavic differed about how long it took, before finally agreeing that they spent a full day putting the ship together, albeit with many much-needed breaks.
In the “wheels” category, sisters Kayleela, 5, and Jericka Bryce, 2, won by donning the dresses of fictional “Frozen” sisters Elsa and Anna, to ride in a miniature Jeep bearing their characters’ likenesses.
Tumblers from Rising Stars Gymnastics strutted away with first place in the “group” category.
Josiah Moore had entered the Kiddies Parade for the past four of his 9 years, but this year saw him finally take first in the “costumes” category by dressing up as the Tinman from The Wizard of Oz. It took three hours to make his costume, out of duct tape, cardboard and dryer tubes for the arms, and it took another four minutes just to put it on, Josiah said.
Also, this year’s strawberry shortcake-eating contest at the Market at Asbery Field saw some of Marysville’s local eating talents trumped by out-of-towners.
While the 10-and-younger division went to Trenton Parker, Hayden Stich finished first for the 11-15 group, devouring his shortcake within a minute and five seconds.A
round full of pageant princesses saw Queen Charlotte Whitten of the Port Orchard Fathoms O’ Fun polish off her plate before any members of the Marysville Strawberry Festival Royalty Court could.
One round later, Maryfest President Darren Doty came in second to Capital Lakefair President George Sharp, who scarfed up his dessert in 39 seconds, with Daffodil Festival President Debbie Barbara coming in third.”I asked the guy who’d won before me how he did it, and he said, ‘Just inhale it,'” Sharp said. “Get as much in your mouth as you can.”
Erica Darling, assistant manager of the Marysville Walmart, oversaw the contest.”This was a highly competitive group,” Darling said. “The girls took longer, but fewer boys volunteered. One kid said this contest was on his bucket list, although he didn’t win.”
