Crowds line downtown Ottawa streets for Santa toy parade

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Ottawa received its first taste of the holiday season Saturday morning despite the warm and sunny weather at the Help Santa Toy Parade.

Eager participants began setting up in front of Ottawa’s city hall well before the parade started at around 11 a.m.

Floats from organizations like the Ottawa Fire Services band, OC Transpo, Firehouse Subs and the Ottawa BlackJacks basketball team travelled from Elgin Street west to Bank Street and then all the way south to Lansdowne Park.

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Crowds of spectators, some wearing costumes and plenty of kids lined the streets as the floats moved along the route.

Attendees were treated to dogs in costumes, mascots, horses, a seemingly endless supply of candy canes and, of course, Santa.

Cameron Taylor, chair of the Help Santa Toy Parade Committee with the Ottawa Professional Firefighters Association, has been a firefighter for 14 years and has been organizing the event for four years, although Saturday’s event was actually his third parade due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We get to bring some joy to this city, we get to have a lot of fun, kick off the Christmas season and, on top of that, we get to raise money and toys,” Taylor said.

“Not everybody can afford to put toys under the tree.”

Taylor said all of the toys would go to CTV and MOVE 100’s Toy Mountain.

“All the toys stay local, and 100 per cent of our donations go to buying toys,” Taylor said.

During the parade, firefighters walked alongside the floats, collecting card and cash donations in firefighter rubber boots.

Austin Kattackal stood along Elgin Street on Saturday morning with a big bag of toys in hand, ready to donate.

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“Most of us are very fortunate, we have a job, we can put food on the table,” Kattackal said, adding that it was important to think of those less fortunate.

Denis Charbonneau, one of the owners of Ottawa Firehouse Subs, which also had a float at the parade, said it was great to take part in holiday festivities and to give back to the community.

The parade made its way to Lansdowne Park at around 12:30 p.m. after a brief traffic delay, with a large crowd of people waiting there for the floats’ arrivals.

Councillor Marty Carr was one of the elected officials on the City of Ottawa’s float. Saturday was her second time taking part in the parade, which she called a “joyful, family-friendly event.”

“The purpose is excellent,” said Carr, who represents Alta Vista ward. “Just to see the kids and see all the excitement that they’re looking forward to the holiday season, it’s just a really fun time.”

The Help Santa Toy Parade was the first of several holiday-related parades and other events in the capital region over the next several weeks. The City of Ottawa posted an extensive list of those events online at https://ottawa.ca/en/city-hall/city-news/newsroom/santa-claus-young-and-young-heart

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