“We are not saying exactly what our entry is this year, but there will be hundreds of lights on the vehicle and maybe 2,000 on the float,” Mark Caronna, outreach minister for New Hope Baptist Church said.

New Hope won first place in the annual nighttime parade last year with its full size boat float titled, “Fishers of Men.” Church volunteers are looking to offering some pretty stiff competition with their entry this year.

At left, this 2008 Parade of Lights first place winning entry by New Hope Baptist Church was a hit at Tomball Night last year. New Hope volunteers are busy preparing this year’s parade float to challenge the competition.

No stranger to the lighted parade, Carrona said he has participated in the unique Tomball event for many years with other churches and organizations.

“The best thing about Tomball Night is that it gets different people from the community together — it’s not a business meeting, or a church service where you see a lot of the same people,” he said. “I like getting out there and meeting new folks each year.”

Last year, New Hope handed out more than 1,300  bottles of water before the parade and Caronna said he and many other volunteers with the church will be out again this year, looking forward to manning the free water booth.

One newcomer to this year’s Tomball Night parade is Outback Western World, located at 30405 Dobbin Hufsmith Road, just north of the City of Tomball. Chris O’Rourke, owner and manager, said Outback’s parade entry will feature a palomino centerpiece — what else?

“This is our first year to enter the parade and we are really looking forward to it,” he said. “I have one of those fiberglass palominos and we are designing a float around it.”

Another tradition will carry on during the parade when Abandoned Animal Rescue (AAR) of Tomball features its float with “Who Let the Dogs Out,” the classic 2000 recording by Baha Men.

“We started this three years ago,” Barbara Schulz, member of the AAR Board of Directors said. “James Gordon, one of our other directors had the idea. It was just a natural.”

Like so many Parade of Lights entries, AAR participates in the parade for fun and to shine a light on its mission, the business of saving lives at the no-kill animal shelter in Tomball. Volunteers from AAR will pack the float to get the word out that just two hours a week can change lives.

“Everyone comes out for the fun and the fireworks at the end are exciting too,” Schulz said of Tomball Night and the Parade of Lights.

Tomball Night is scheduled for Aug. 7 and will begin at 5 p.m. The annual event features food vendors, live music, and sales at dozens of Tomball stores to mark the back-to-school shopping season.

The parade will kick off at 9:15 p.m. and travel down Main Street, ending near the Tomball Depot. At the conclusion of the parade, the night will wrap up with a fireworks display.

For more information, call 281-351-7222 or visit TomballChamber.org.

Comments (0)

Subscribe to this comment's feed