On Monday, May 20, Fort Langley resident Heather Hazelton got up at 6 a.m., picked up a folding chair and headed for Glover Road, just around the corner from her home, making a brief side trip to get a coffee before she picked her spot and settled in to wait for the start of the annual May Day parade.
Hazelton was among the very first to select a location along the route that morning, beneath a tree providing cover.
“Shady if its sunny, shelter if it rains,” Hazelton explained.
By her estimate, Hazelton, a 71-year old retired Langley School District staffer, has been attending the Fort Langley parade for more than 50 years, even taking part in the parade as a May pole dancer.
“I wish it could go back to more floats like it used to be,” Hazelton commented, “but this is good.”
While she was chatting, two people driving by stopped long enough to say hello to Hazelton, remarking that she always finds a good location.
She soon had a lot of company, with hundreds crowding the streets to watch 60 groups pass by, ranging from elected officials, to dance troupes, marching bands, antique tractors, classic cars, comedic performers, and more.
Volunteer parade marshal Russ Townsend described it as the “greatest day” for Fort Langley, an event that keeps changing.
“Every year, it’s a slightly different show, because not everybody shows up every year,” Townsend explained.
“Some people have health problems or some can’t make it, but we just put the show on [every year].”
At the family fun festival in Fort Langley Park following the parade, May Queen Georgia Mathias, an 11-year-old Noel Booth Elementary student, was officially crowned and introduced herself to her subjects, talking about her family and how they consider Fort Langley, and Derby Reach Park, a second home.
”I have a dog named Otis, about 35 chickens, and a wonderful cat named Stella,” she shared.
This year’s royal party included Miss Canada Karra Maxwell, retiring 2023 May Queen Isabella Sitter, and maids of honour Cheyenne Maher and Marley McKenzie, with Queen Mother Lynda Davidson.
Davidson, a volunteer with the Fort Langley Lions, said the organization started preparing for this year’s event in January.
‘If it wasn’t for the Fort Langley Lions, I don’t think we would have the May Day Parade anymore,” Davidson said. “They do such a wonderful job.”
May Day wound down with the traditional May pole dance by young performers, followed by the Fort Langley Dancing Witches, a group devoted to the witches dance that was made popular in Germany and since spread around the world.
Weather conditions were near-perfect, with a few clouds, but no rain.
Langley Township Mayor Eric Woodward said it was great to be a part of annual parade that he described as “a fabulous tradition that spans 102 years.”
May Days has been celebrated every year since 1922, even during the pandemic, when it had to become a virtual event, in 2020 and 2021.
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