Page 6 - BusinessWest March 7, 2022

6 MARCH 7, 2022 FEATURE BusinessWest
The Return of a
Tradition
For Holyoke, the Parade Brings Business —
and a Sense
of Normalcy
It’s been nearly 1,100 days
since Holyoke has staged its
St. Patrick’s Day Parade and accompanying road race.
That’s way too long for the businesses that depend on those institutions for a large percentage of their annual revenue. And it’s way too long for a community that always gains a huge dose of civic pride when mid-March rolls around. The traditions are back for 2022, and for the city and the region, there is much to celebrate.
TBy George O’Brien
he cover to the program book for the 69th Holyoke St. Patrick’s Day Parade was designed by an artist from Ireland.
Blended with the headline ‘The Season of Green,’ is a collection of the
words that identify dozens of shades of green
— from pistachio to lime; jade to shamrock — arranged in the shape of the Emerald Isle, and in those various colors.
It’s striking — and, yes, very green. But per- haps the most poignant thing about this publi- cation is the date printed in smaller type to the side: March 22nd, 2020.
Indeed, this program book was published just over two years ago, and except for some minor updates in a supplement that will be inserted into the book, it remains profoundly unchanged. That goes from the date on the
Marc Joyce, chairman of the 69th Holyoke St. Patrick’s Day Parade