Chelsea holds 24th annual Christmas parade, Splashing with Santa

Published 9:36 am Wednesday, December 20, 2023

By Noah Wortham

By NOAH WORTHAM | Staff Writer 

CHELSEA – Hundreds of residents lined the sides of Highway 47 in anticipation of the floats, parade goers and candy during the annual Chelsea Christmas Parade.

Chelsea’s 24th annual Christmas parade took place on Saturday, Dec. 16 at 10 a.m. and featured 123 entries.

“It was the largest we’ve ever had,” Chelsea Mayor Tony Picklesimer said. “Everyone seemed to really enjoy it.”

Business owners, local law enforcement, city councilmembers and school organizations waved to attendees and threw candy from their floats.

“I think this is the 15th year my insurance agency has had a float in the parade,” said Scott Weygand, Chelsea city councilmember and owner of Weygand Insurance Agency. “As always, it was a great time and the crowds were huge and it was great seeing all of the smiling faces. “

The Christmas parade is traditionally held on the third Saturday in December each year and is hosted by the city of Chelsea.

“This event couldn’t happen without the hard work of our city staff,” Weygand said. “Gerri Roberts organizes the event, and other city departments help with the staging and clean up, along with the COP’s directing traffic.”

Picklesimer said the city’s goal in holding the event each year is to maintain Chelsea’s small-town feel.

“That’s what it’s really about to me,” he said. “ Parades are traditionally one of the times that cities and towns come together and kick off the Christmas season and it’s just a matter of doing something fun, having a lot of our citizens out, enjoying one another and the parade. It’s also a great time for our businesses to showcase themselves.”

After the parade ended, residents were also able to enjoy the annual Splashing with Santa event.

“Splashing with Santa was really good,” Picklesimer said. “It went off without a hitch, and Santa got to take lots of pictures.”

This year’s Splashing with Santa saw more than 300 people come and visit the Melrose Park Splash Pad for the holiday festivities.

“Splashing with Santa was a big success and I look forward to these events to continue into the future,” Weygand said.

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