Blue Goose, Lencioni family to be grand marshals for St. Patrick's Parade
The Downtown St. Charles Partnership has announced the Blue Goose Market and Lencioni family as grand marshals for the St. Charles St. Patrick's Parade.
Thousands of people of all ages line Main Street to watch the antics of cheerful leprechauns, listen to award-winning local marching bands, watch the elaborate and colorful floats glide down the street, pay tribute to the walking units of veterans, hear the melodic strains of the Celtic pipe bands, and see all the best that St. Charles has to offer.
This event began back in 1998, when Maurice McNally invited Rosie Martinez to leave Dublin, Ireland and help open McNally's Traditional Irish Pub in the heart of downtown St. Charles. In 1999, Rosie approached the City of St. Charles about organizing the first St. Patrick's Parade, where she "wanted to bring a piece of (her) culture to St. Charles and show how we really do it back home. We wanted to bring a piece of Ireland to St. Charles."
Since then, the St. Patrick's parade has seen a multitude of organizers, supporters, and attendees that have turned it into the local tradition and staple it is today.
One of the great honors of the parade is to be its grand marshal. While the Downtown St. Charles Partnership and its parade committee determine the grand marshal, their decision is based on the positive impact that a particular person, group, business, or organization has made in downtown St. Charles. This year is no exception.
The Blue Goose is excited to be celebrating 90 years in downtown St. Charles and the Lencioni family has been there from the start. There have always been grocery stores in St. Charles, but the Blue Goose Market has always been one of the finest. The Blue Goose Market is the oldest family owned-and-operated retail business in St. Charles and their tradition of offering quality groceries at reasonable prices continues to this day. The Lencioni family has been very involved in the community and have played a large role in revitalizing the downtown.
"It's an honor to be recognized as grand marshal for the 2018 St. Patrick's Parade; our traditions have always included great food and a great shopping experience for the people of St. Charles.
Lencioni goes on to say, "St. Charles is our family, whether you have been here for 30 years or new to town, we want to be your favorite grocery store. We are located in the heart of downtown St. Charles. We are a supermarket that can take a routine chore and turn it into a fun highlight and that's what makes our job great. St. Charles is a magnificent place to have a business and live in."
The St. Charles St. Patrick's Parade steps off at 2 p.m. Saturday, March 10, at Main and Sixth Street. The route continues down Main Street and concludes at Fourth Avenue.
The mission of the Downtown St. Charles Partnership is to enhance the economic viability and to preserve the character and beauty of Downtown St. Charles. The partnership produces the St. Charles Fine Art Show, Holiday Homecoming, Jazz Weekend, and the St. Patrick's Parade. For more information, including membership, volunteer opportunities and events, visit www.downtownstcharles.org.