Memorial Day Parade in Denison, Texas

    I don't know about your hometown, but in Denison it is a big deal when Memorial Day rolls around. There is always a parade through the downtown area and just about everyone wants to be a part of the parade. It is an annual event and everyone looks forward to it.

 
   The parade was led by a unit of the Denison Police and the Honor Guard with the colors. The high school drill team (the Stingerettes) are recognized across the state of Texas for their precision and they were no less than perfect again today. The high school's mascot is the Yellow Jacket and the drill team's name is derived from the business end of the Yellow Jacket. 

    Military vets now and past are the honored ones today.. In the top photo former Grayson County Tax-Assessor Collector John Ramsey shows he still can handle a one-ton carrier. These vehicles were made by Dodge/Ford/General Motors during World War II.
In the middle photo, my longtime friend and former Marine Sergeant Jerry Lover enjoys the ride and waving to the crowd. Bottom photo shows a Jeep...this vehicle was the envy of the Germans in WWII and they tried many times to copy it. The Jeep saw life in WWII, Korea, and Vietnam. The HumVee came along to put the Jeep into retirement..

   Vietnam Veterans of America were well represented today.. This group in a 3/4 ton vehicle...and in the bottom photo a two and a half ton truck (duece and a half). I have a lot of memories involved a duece and a half...and all of the memories are bad... Great truck though..

     Okay,..I guess I have to give ample credit to the Navy... Here a bunch of swabbies wave to the crowd as they try to keep up with the Army floats. I joke but for a while we had a Navy corpman with my Special Forces unit at Phu Bai, South Vietnam until the Army could locate an Army medic for us.

     Vintage cars are always part of any parade in this part of the country and everyone loves them. Top photo shows a 1933 Ford 5-window coupe. This car had the original flathead V-8 engine in it and was quite as a mouse when running. The middle photo is a 1932 Ford 5-window coupe with a Chevrolet V-8 engine in it (Nice sounding car). The bottom photo is a 1939 Ford Coupe... The '39 and '40 are very similar in appearance. Check the moveable windshield that can be extended to allow better ventilation in the car. 

     The Hella Shriners were out in force today...The Shriners do a lot of good work across the country... Helping out people that can't afford good medical/health coverage. The Shriners burn center hospital is also one of the best in the entire country..

 

     For obvious reasons they always put the horseback riders at the end of the parade...but this year a special pooper-scooper truck followed the equine entries and the streets were spic and span within moments of the transgression. First photo shows a good looking bay mare ridden by the red head.

     And a special thanks go out to the Denison Police Department for their excellent crowd control and intersection management. It was a good parade and nobody got hurt...What else can you ask for!!