Tuesday, November 20, 2007
Begins at 6:20 p.m. at the corner of College Ave. and State St.

Description & TV Broadcast
 

The Appleton Downtown Christmas Parade is the largest nighttime parade in the Midwest. Last year's parade drew approximately 80,000 spectators to Downtown Appleton. Additionally, a television audience of over 100,000 views the parade live and during rebroadcasts on WFRV-TV, Channel 5, Green Bay, WI and WJMN-TV, Channel 3, Escanaba, MI.

“Susan’s efforts have created a lot of growth in the downtown area,” according to Greg Otis, Parade Chairman. “Our committee felt this was the year to honor her and the Performing Arts Center.”

The Fox Cities Performing Arts Center is celebrating its fifth anniversary this season by continuing to feature the best live entertainment from around the world such as the upcoming holiday favorite A Christmas Carol and holiday concerts by Lori Line and The Nylons just to name a few.
 

Plaza Dedication. To celebrate its 100th anniversary, the company Appleton will dedicate and present the Plaza in City Park to the City of Appleton on November 20 at approximately 7:45 p.m. immediately following the Downtown Appleton Christmas Parade. The dedication ceremony will include performances by the Appleton Boychoir and The Festive Brass, a tree-lighting and community sing-along. Speakers will include Appleton Mayor Tim Hanna and Representative Steve Kagen.

The company invites the public to attend.

The dedication event will also serve as a collection point for the public to contribute nonperishable food items to the Salvation Army and/or unwrapped holiday gifts for the Toys for Tots campaign.

In June the company presented the city with a $100,000 gift to underwrite the cost of constructing a circular plaza in City Park to serve as a focal point in the park and a permanent, year-round gathering place for members of the community and visitors. Appleton made the presentation as part its 100th anniversary celebration. The plaza includes a colored brick patterned surface and circular knee-high concrete seatwall. A raised center planter contains a tree suitable for holiday light displays.

“We chose to provide this gift to the city of Appleton to honor our employees and retirees for helping our company and our customers grow and prosper during our first 100 years of operation,“ said Mark Richards, chief executive officer. “We also want to recognize the support we have received from the City of Appleton and from the people of the community during that same time.“
 

Limit on participants. Due to the unpredictable weather this time of year, we must limit the parade to 80 units. The Appleton Downtown Christmas Parade has become so popular that we cannot always accommodate everyone who wishes to enter. Regardless, we encourage all entries and attempt to include as many as possible. Units are strongly encouraged (but not required) to use the theme “A Sesquicentennial Christmas.” Several guidelines have been set to help the selection committee determine final entries. They are as follows:

1. Applicants will be accepted in the following commercial and non-commercial categories:
   a) Floats
   b) Bands
   c) Animals (including carriages, horse-drawn vehicles and animal walking units)
   d) Vehicles (single units, including cars, trucks, buses, etc.)
   e) Walking Units
    
2. All entries must be of a non-commercial Christmas theme and be decorated accordingly. This parade is designed to entertain families, especially children. It is not a commercial endeavor. The Parade Committee will eliminate any entry not in compliance. Therefore, floats are encouraged to display their name or sponsor on the float in a non-commercial manner.
    
3. Applications must be received on or before September 28, 2007.
    
4. A detailed description of your entry must accompany the application. The Parade Committee acceptance will depend on the detailed description of your entry. This also enables the committee to line up the best possible parade.
    
5. Your acceptance in the 37th Annual Appleton Downtown Christmas Parade will be confirmed via mail/E-mail on or before October 8, 2007. Those entries that are not accepted will also be notified.
    

Policy
 

The parade committee does not allow anything to be thrown or handed to spectators on the sidelines. We must take this stance for safety purposes and any group in violation may be removed from the parade list in the following years. This rule will be strictly enforced.

For other rules, download this PDF.

Trophies
 

As is tradition, three traveling trophies will be awarded to the best entries in the following categories:

1. The Appleton Downtown Inc. Trophy – Best Commercial Entry
2. The Christmas Parade Trophy – Best Non-Commercial Entry
3. The Bernie Pearlman Memorial Trophy – Best Entry “In the Eyes of a Child”

Contacts
 

Please contact Mary Ann or Djuanna at the ADI Office at (920) 954-9112 if you have any questions about the 2007 Downtown Appleton Christmas Parade.