CRESTVIEW — Red and white were the colors du jour up and down Main Street the afternoon of Sept. 26 as the 2012 Crestview High School Homecoming parade wended its way up the city’s main thoroughfare. Candy flew by the handful to throngs that lined the street as student organizations, businesses and community groups paraded by.
Laine Wing, 9, dove for the showers of candy that flew his way, accumulating a substantial stash by parade’s end. Asked what he’ll do with his haul, Laine grinned and said, “Eat it! Bubblegum’s my favorite.”
School sports teams, including the Bulldogs, which lost to Tallahassee Godby at the evening’s Homecoming football game, cruised by on flatbed trailers. Each Crestview High class made an elaborate float, and a parade of beauty queens and Homecoming Court royalty sat in mounds of taffeta meringue atop convertibles.
Marchers included the Crestview High JROTC contingent, which led the parade and kept in step with call-and-response jodies led by their student commanders. The Big Red Machine’s members, in full parade uniform as they played the Crestview High fight song, followed the student soldiers.
School supporters included the float bearing Mayor David Cadle, City Clerk Betsy Roy, and city council members Ben Iannucci III, Robyn Helt, Tom Gordon and Charles Baugh Jr., all of whom passed out red and white strands of beads and candy. Businesses operated floats or flatbed trucks or walked along passing out coupons and candy.
The weekend’s festivities began earlier in the day with a massive school-wide pep rally and concluded with Saturday evening’s Homecoming dance. See "Related Media" link on the left for video.
This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Homecoming parade paints town red and white (VIDEO)