SANTA THIS SATURDAY: Youngsville Refuses Health Officials Requests to Cancel Christmas Parade

YOUNGSVILLE – The Christmas Spirit won’t be suppressed in Franklin County. Town board members in Youngsville are refusing requests from local and state health officials to cancel their annual Christmas parade. Instead, the town will hold the parade, bringing some much needed magic and normalcy to the season, while practicing what amounts to common sense.

In a statement, the board said:

“To those with continued reservations we would like to share that – when using the standards established in our governor’s executive orders regarding the square-foot-per-person limits for retail stores – the “capacity” of our 18.2-acre parade route would be over five times the population of Youngsville. Thus, we’re confident that when parade goers observe physical distancing and spread-out along the parade route (along with observing all other guidelines), we will have a safe and successful parade.”

They’re asking everyone to wear masks and be respectful of distancing as well.

That this is seen as provocative is notable in and of itself. It’s a sign of how far fear can drive us into irrationality. As the board members mentioned in comments to the press, the event is OUTSIDE on 20 acres of parade route. Health officials fear mongering to get them to cancel the most wonderful time of the year while your local retail supercenter can host mobs of people is an insult to the intelligence North Carolina citizens.

If the virus spreads best indoors in close quarters, then outside spread out on the street is hardly some extraordinary risk to the attendees or public health in general.

Good for the local leaders in keeping the spirit alive and standing up for common sense in the face of a wave of Pandemic Panic. They reportedly had overwhelming support of the community, which tells us there will be a lot of Christmas cheer in Youngsville this weekend.

The parade will be held in downtown Youngsville at 10 AM on Saturday, December 5.

So, if you want to experience a merry Christmas parade — yours was probably canceled — here’s your chance to see Santa and ponder the reason for the season.