Hillsborough, NC – (October 11, 2016) - The Hillsborough Handmade Parade is a potpourri of wild costumes, giant puppets, stilt-walkers, marching bands and much more. This Mardi Gras style street parade takes place on October 15th in downtown Hillsborough.

A new entry this year is the “All Aboard, Everyone is Welcome.” It’s a giant puppet of a VW, 70s style van, a throw-back to an era of peace and harmony.  The van has a rainbow on its side, an Eno-1 license plate and a banner that reminds us what this county is all about:  “All Aboard, Everyone is Welcome.”

Members of the “All Aboard Krewe” include Orange County Commissioner Penny Rich; Hillsborough Mayor Pro Tem, Kathleen Ferguson; Alicia Stemper, wife of Carrboro Mayor Lydia Lavelle; Katie Murray, Orange County Arts Commission Coordinator; Sarah DeGennaro, Director of the Alliance for Historic Hillsborough; and Libbie Hough, Chair of the Alliance for Historic Hillsborough Board.  Several staff members and friends of the Visitors Bureau will also work the parade.

“Our parade entry was conceived by creative members of our team,” says Laurie Paolicelli, Director of the Orange County Visitors Bureau, “many who lived during the revolution of the 60s and 70s which fought for inclusivity, and extending a hand to all.  This is a goal we continue to strive toward in Orange County and we thought the parade was a fun way to use the arts to tell our story,” Paolicelli says.

The Hillsborough Handmade Parade is a grass roots community participation celebration sponsored and organized by the Hillsborough Arts Council. The parade will begin at 2:30 on Saturday, October 15th, at the Town Hall (101 East Orange Street) and will end at Cameron Park. (Entrance is at the corner of East King and Cameron Street.) At Cameron Park there will be a grand finale with bands, food, a drum circle and an opportunity to enjoy all the amazing puppets. The parade theme is “Walk of the Wild Things!” For more information, visit http://www.hillsboroughartscouncil.org/

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Media Contact:
Laurie Paolicelli, Director
Chapel Hill/Orange County Visitors Bureau
(919) 245-4322
lpaolicelli@visitchapelhill.org