Pilgrim’s 2016 float riders pose for a picture before the parade: Angela Sampson, Barbara Wuthrich, Emma Watts, Steven Sampson, Sharon Sampson, Cooper Sampson, Danny Sampson, Jeanna Watts, and Pastor Galler. Photo: Edgar Wuthrich.
Pilgrim Lutheran Church’s entry in the 86th annual Kilgore Christmas Parade earned an Honorable Mention in the non-profit category. The 2016 parade theme was “Candy Land Christmas”, and Pilgrim’s take on that theme emphasized Jesus as the sweetest gift.
After developing a design earlier in the fall, members constructed the float Saturday, November 26th, at a workshop belonging to members. Volunteers built a new platform for the manger scene and sign overhead and made other decorations. The float featured oversized gifts and candies on each corner, candies along the sides, and a sign on the back that identified the congregation, gave its web address, and conveyed a holiday greeting.
The night of Tuesday, November 27, the float was one of more than 70 that lined up and made its way through the streets of downtown Kilgore. Sunday School children dressed up as Mary and Joseph, and other members rode along to wave to and greet the crowd. Recorded music from previous years was again played from the float. Unseasonably warm temperatures seemed to bring out larger crowds than usual. After the parade, Pilgrim’s participants returned to the Church for a supper of homemade chili and all the fixings.
Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors Chairman Reece Nichols presented Pilgrim its Honorable Mention award. Receiving it are Jeanna and Lucy Watts and Pastor Galler. Photo: James Draper, Kilgore News Herald.
Organizers reported that judges found it very difficult to decide among all the well-done entries, and so additional awards were given out on Friday, December 2, at the Chamber of Commerce, which sponsored the parade. Pilgrim’s thanks go to the Mission and Evangelism Committee that sponsored the congregation’s float and to all who helped construct it and who drove and road it.
Pilgrim has participated in the annual parade a number of times over its more than 60-year history, with its most-recent largely-continuous string of appearances beginning in 2010. In 2012, the congregation’s float won first place in the non-profit category.
You can find the complete list of winners and more photos of the parade on the Kilgore News Herald website here.
