I've lived in Bryan/College Station, Texas, my entire life except for a few years away when I was first married. As a child I remember us waiting anxiously for the annual Christmas Parade. I remember when it was held in downtown Bryan instead of on Texas Avenue.
I had the pleasure of being in the parade three times. The first time I was scared to death. I was a senior in high school and in the "Lass-os" the pep rally team. We marched down the streets. I was so afraid I was going to get on the wrong foot, but I didn't.
The second time was when my real estate company in the 1970s, McCool-Hogard Realty ,made a float and we entered it into the contest and won first place in the commercial division. If I rememeber correctly, we built the float in Bonnie Hogard's garage with Sarah Norman, Margie Stibora, and our other agents designing and building it. If you participated, let me know. All agents' children got to ride on the float. We had fun.
The third time was in the 1980s when my daughter Leslie McCool was a cheerleader at Bryan High School. They put together a float made like a space ship, if I remember correctly. My husband Clay was always liked by all the high school kids so he helped them make a structurally sound float. I remember the kids had so much fun. Clay & I rode inside the cab of our truck that pulled the float. All the cheerleaders were on the float. We won first in a category, don't remember which one.
Those were the fun days! We were always involved in community activities when the kids were growing up.
Be sure to go see this year's 81st annual CHRISTMAS PARADE. It is themed "Holly Jolly Christmas" and begins at the intersection of Polo Road and University Drive then goes north on Texas Avenue to Sulfur Springs Road. It begins at 2 p.m. Come join the fun.
Support the community. It takes a lot of time and effort to build a float or participate in some way.
Kay Perry
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Happy Holiday! And thank you for sharing your memories!
