This Weekend!

CPHC St. Patrick’s Day Parade Float!

It’s time to start the process to design and build our St. Patrick’s Day Parade float and we’re going to need volunteers! This is the biggest thing we do all year! Last Saturday we had a special meeting to review ideas for the float. Several ideas were presented. We decided to go with a tropical/Jamaican paradise theme called “We Be Shammin’!” loosely based on the Denver St. Patrick’s Day Parade theme “Shamrockin’”!  Our float will have a giant wave with surfers and of course a Tiki Bar! Later this week we will have a drawing in PDF format. The drawing will give everyone a much better perspective. Now we need volunteers to work on the design details and construction of the float! Most important is volunteers to lead the Design team and lead the Construction Team. These volunteers need to work closely together so the whole project comes together! If you are interested in becoming a Lead or just a volunteer as part of the team please send me an e-mail, trule@comcast.net. Please let me know what area you are interested in Design or Construction.

Below are our construction dates which will take place at Dixie LaHood’s place on the corner of 7^th and Inca Street in Denver. Construction of small items may take place at other locations but the majority of the building will be at 7^th & Inca. Please let me know if you want to be part of this major event by volunteering for design or construction! And remember, we need a couple of members with leadership skills to guide the teams and bring the float together!

Float Construction Dates!

Saturday, March 6^th – Float Construction! 9:00 am to 5:00 pm. Dixie’s lot at the corner of Inca St. and 7^th, Denver! 

Saturday, March 7^th – Float Construction! 10:00 am to 5:00 pm. Dixie’s lot at the corner of Inca St. and 7^th, Denver! 

Friday, March 12^th – Float Construction! 9:00 am to 5:00 pm. Dixie’s lot at the corner of Inca St. and 7^th, Denver!

Saturday, March 13th ~ PARADE DAY!!!~  No Club meeting in March due to the parade!

Below are the Parade Day FAQs (also enclosed). Some things have been added and updates made so please take another look. A few things I want to point out are Candy, Costumes, Tips for our Driver and Throwing Candy or Give-a-Ways (these items are all covered in the FAQs)! Please bring a large bag or two of candy to the staging area. Wear costumes that reflect our float theme! Jamaican style!! Keep them G-Rated. This is a family event! Every costume store Maureen and I have been in have the dreadlock wigs and hats with dreadlocks. Please don’t forget to bring some extra cash for the truck driver. Our driver Lance does this on his personal time and does a great job every year! He deserves a big tip!! We cannot throw candy or our give-away items. It’s a very serious offense! We’ll get a warning then we’ll be asked to pull out of the parade. Please hand out all items to the crowd. If you see anyone throwing items please let me know!! Thank you!

Where are we going after the parade?  Immediately following the parade we’re going to LoDo’s Bar & Grill! 1923 Market Street, right across the street from Coors Field for our Post-Parade Party! Go upstairs where you’ll find an area for the Parrot Heads! Families are welcome! The area will be open to the general public as well so please get there early to get a good seat! Irish step dancers and bagpipers will be performing. There may also be an Irish band playing! LoDo’s will be offering beer and Margarita specials for the Parrot Heads! Also a buffet lunch deal! As soon as we bring our float back to the staging area we’d like everyone to make their way over to LoDo’s. Keep your Green Wrist Bands on to identify you as a Parrot Head. They may use those to identify us for our drink/food discounts! Let’s try to get to LoDo’s as soon as we can and keep the party going!!

Parade Day Frequently Asked Questions!

I’d like to give you as much information as I can about Parade Day. I hope to answer all your questions but if I missed something please let me know, trule@comcast.net! We have a lot of new members who may be unfamiliar with the Denver St. Patrick’s Day Parade and how this all works! This is one of the most fun things we do each year and we want it to be a safe and successful day. Of course we’re also hoping to make an impression on the crowd and the parade judges! I expect as many as 100 people showing up to be part of the Colorado Parrot Head Club float. We need everyone to know what’s going on! If you’re not sure about something please let me know! Please make sure your guests are aware of this information too!

When and where is the parade?  Saturday, March 13. Lower Downtown Denver. Parade route is at the bottom.

Should I reserve a hotel room?  Yes! We highly recommend you get a hotel room for Saturday night! This is going to be a fun day and a long day! Please get a room!! There are lots of hotels downtown and price options. Unfortunately I don’t have any specific hotel deals.

What do I bring?  Please bring a large bag or two of individually wrapped candy for us to give away to the crowd! We need your help to fill the horse trough with candy! Please bring your bags of candy directly to the rear of the Kid’s Trailer and drop them off. Do not bring any cans, bottles or coolers! There will not be room on the float for coats, purses, backpacks or personal items! We will have beer, margaritas, rum drinks, soft drinks, water and plenty of plastic cups.

Where do I need to be on Parade Day morning?  Our driver will try to get the float in the staging area by 9:00 am. Staging area is the Coors Field Parking Lot! Please plan to arrive between 9:00 am and 10:30 am. We will have designated people doing final preparations to the float while in the staging area. We may not take off down the parade route until 11:00 am or 11:30 am. Take advantage of this time to walk around and see other entries! We’ll also try to take a group picture in front of our float before we take off.  If you have any trouble finding our float in the staging area just ask any parade marshal for help.

Colorado Parrot Head Club

Division – 1

Unit Number – 45

Staging Area Street Address – 145 Limerick Street

Where can I park my car?  If you get there early enough you can park in Coors Field parking Lot A. Get to Park Ave. (23^rd St.). Park Ave. is one way heading northwest. Proceed northwest on Park Ave. (23^rd St.). Turn right at Wazee St. into Coors Field Lot A. The lot will fill up fast!

You cannot bring your car to the float staging area unless you are dropping off something for the float. If you are dropping off items for the float you must drop it off quickly then move your car to Lot A!

What do I wear on parade day?  What you wear is very important! The parade theme is ShamRockin’. Our float theme is We be Shammin’. Parrot Head & tropical/Jamaican costumes please! Colors are Green, Yellow and Red – Rasta Colors! This is a family parade and we are a family oriented club so please keep all costumes tasteful and G rated. We would appreciate it if you could dress children in Jamaican costumes (dread locks, tie dyed shirts, etc.). We want to be colorful and eye catching! Be creative! We also want to carry over our theme and show off our Parrot Head attitude at the Post-Parade Party at LoDo’s (1923 Market Street)!

Will you need volunteers on Parade Day?  Yes! In the staging area we will be asking for several volunteers. We may need as many as 30 volunteers! Some to carry our club banner and LoDo’s Bar & Grill posters. Others to carry flags and large fins on sticks. Our banner will lead our float. Volunteers carrying flags will follow the club banner and be in front of the main float. Volunteers carrying the fins on sticks will follow the Kid’s trailer. We would like our volunteers carrying LoDo’s posters to split up and walk the parade route spaced out evenly on each side.

Will there be food available in the Staging Area?  No. We will have some doughnuts and pastries in the staging area but we recommend you have a good breakfast before you arrive! The doughnuts and pastries will go very fast! You can get lunch at LoDo’s following the parade!

Can I ride on the float?  Probably not! Unfortunately we will not have much room for riders. We will have two young people on the float riding surf boards under the wave. There will be a few already designated members running the Tiki Bar. One designated member inside the wave with the confetti cannons. Two designated members on board to run the sound system. If you have a physical condition and need to ride please let me know, trule@comcast.net and we’ll take care of you.

Can children walk in the parade or do they have to ride?  Children under 5 years old must ride on the Kid’s Trailer! 5 and older can walk with their parents along the parade route.

If I can’t ride on the float and I’m not volunteering what do I do?  You have a very important job! We would like everyone to walk along side and to the rear of the Kid’s Trailer and hand out candy!  Do not throw candy or anything to the crowd!! You must hand candy to the people on the streets.

Where do we get the candy to give to the crowd?  The children on the Kid’s Trailer will be filling up cups with candy. Please go to the back of the Kid’s Trailer and get a cup or two of candy. Hand that out to the crowd. Keep your cup and return to the Kid’s Trailer for a refill of candy!

Can we throw candy or give-a-ways to the crowd? NO! Please do not throw candy or anything else to the crowd! If the parade marshal’s see us throwing items we will be warned. If we don’t comply we will be removed from the parade! If you see someone throwing anything please let Todd or Maureen know right away! We must control our fellow members and guest! This is a strict parade rule!

How do I get a beverage from the Tiki Bar?  You must be at least 21 years old and wearing a green wrist band to receive any alcoholic beverages! On parade morning in the staging area you can get wrist bands from Todd or Maureen Rule. Members can have up to 4 wrist bands. We are asking for a donation of $5.00 each for “Guest Wrist Bands”. Some members will be walking around in the staging area with trays of beverages to help reduce the amount of people around the Tiki Bar. Please be patient and don’t rush the servers, they will be doing the best they can to get you a beverage!! You must be 21 and wearing a green wrist band to get a beverage! It won’t be easy and we don’t recommend you try to get beverages from the Tiki Bar when we’re on the parade route!

What drinks will be available for the kids?  We will have soft drinks and water for the children on the Kid’s Float. Kids Do Not need wrist bands!!

Can I bring guests?  Yes members can bring guests. Please ask your guests to bring candy and dress to our theme! We are asking for a donation of $5.00 for “Guest Wrist Bands”. Children do not need wrist bands.

Can I advertise my company on the float or along the parade route?  No. Our sole sponsor is LoDo’s Bar & Grill. Please do not try to post any advertisements on the float or pass out information about your own personal company or any organization you may be associated with along the parade route. We will be carrying posters and have a banner advertising LoDo’s! Remember, this is the Colorado Parrot Head entry sponsored only by LoDo’s Bar & Grill.

Is there any danger I should be aware of?  Of course! You need to be careful in the staging area. There will be a lot of last minute work being done by the designated Design and Construction teams. Try to keep some distance from the main and kid’s trailers to give them some room to work. On the parade route please keep a safe distance from the sides of both trailers! Especially when making turns!! Use some of your Parrot Head common sense!

Do we tip the Driver?  Yes we do! The driver is a volunteer doing this on his own time! Please have some cash on hand. We will be taking up a collection once we’re back in the staging area.

Where are we going after the parade?  Immediately following the parade we’re going to LoDo’s Bar & Grill! 1923 Market Street, right across the street from Coors Field for our Post-Parade Party! Go upstairs where you’ll find an area for the Parrot Heads! Families are welcome! The area will be open to the general public as well so please get there early to get a good seat! Irish step dancers and bagpipers will be performing. There may also be an Irish band playing! LoDo’s will be offering beer and Margarita specials for the Parrot Heads! Also a buffet lunch deal! As soon as we bring our float back to the staging area we’d like everyone to make their way over to LoDo’s. Keep your Green Wrist Bands on to identify you as a Parrot Head. They may use those to identify us for our drink/food discounts! Let’s try to get to LoDo’s as soon as we can and keep the party going!!

When are we going to dismantle the float?  Sunday (3/14). On Sunday we need to take everything off the trailer! The trailer needs to be ready to go back to Duffy’s on Monday! Please stop by Sunday and give us a hand! Tear down will start around 10:00 am!

If you have any questions not answered above please let me know, trule@comcast.net!