Christmas is often known as everyone’s favorite holiday. Many families and friends have gathered at the Downtown Saint Cloud Christmas parade for the past 61 years. This year it was held on December 7, 2024, at 10am.

      The St. Cloud Chamber of Commerce plans the parade every year with a different theme. Participants in the parade then design a float based off the theme. This year’s theme was “Toys on Parade.”  Dirk Webb, the president/CEO of St. Cloud Chamber of Commerce, elaborated on the theme, “A wide variety of new toys and maybe some things that you might remember from Christmas.” He then explains that reflecting on one’s youth is the “Magic of Christmas.” Mr. Webb says, “One float might have some Legos involved,” explaining that the people building a float might introduce some new things or will reintroduce old toys.

      This is a tradition for many locals in St. Cloud. Jeanette Morgan, an 83-year-old woman, attended the parade in 2024. She has been watching the parade since 1986, 38 years. She says that, “The Morgan Family [her family] won 1^st place in the cars-trucks-tractors in 1998. They joined because her husband had a strong passion for tractors and they thought it was a good idea to show that. After watching the parade for 38 years, she, “always feels the magic of Christmas.”  

‍