Despite a sour end to the BCS National Championship Game and this year’s football season, there is still much to revel in for the people of Eugene.
On Saturday Jan. 22, the city is holding a celebratory parade in honor of the Oregon football team and stand-outs of the entire community, inspiring the “Champions” theme for the event. Event planners see the title applying to excellence shown on the field, in the classroom and in the greater public.
“We liked the idea because there are many champions, and we want to celebrate them all by connecting University and downtown,” Billie Moser, the community events manager, said.
Mayor Kitty Piercy proposed the affair as an inspiration from the championship game. She saw this as the perfect opportunity for community building.
“I thought a parade would be a great way to celebrate the championship at home, rain or shine, win or lose,” Piercy said. “Not only this, but many great things are happening in our community.”
Schools, musical groups, such as the University’s gospel choir , art programs, debate teams and other organizations from the area have been equally successful and will march the streets alongside Oregon head coach Chip Kelly and his players, Oregon’s track team, academic scholars and professors.
Parade onlookers will see an array of floats. Moser confirmed that e-mails are flooding with entries every hour, promising a difficult selection process.
“Participants will be picked based primarily on how they relate to the ‘Champion’ theme,” Moser said.
Moser and her team have put in many hours of planning and drawing up routes as they have had a short two-and-a-half weeks to piece the event together.
The event is slated to begin at 10 a.m., and the parade will start at the University campus at East 13th Avenue and Kincaid Street, onto East 11th Avenue and Oak Street ending at the Park Blocks Downtown Event.
Onlookers can expect 20 to 30 minutes of viewing of the parade, which will disperse along East Eighth Avenue as the conclusion of its route.
But the party won’t stop at East Eighth Avenue. Speeches and live musical entertainment will help organizers keep the fun rolling from a stage set up in the center of Oak Street, and designated streets will be opened up to allow maximum viewing.
Applications for a spot in the parade will be accepted up until Jan. 17 at 5 p.m. Only 45 will make the final cut to compensate for time constraints and the need for carrying out sufficient planning.
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