When Glendale Mayor Jerry P. Weiers set out to create the Hometown Christmas Parade about 14 years ago, he said he wanted to celebrate the true meaning of Christmas with the community. Today, as the city approaches the 12th annual parade, Weiers said he is excited to offer hope and help to the residents while sharing his love for the holiday.
“I remember being the youngest of six kids, my father was a miner and my mother was a nurse’s aide — neither one of them made good money,” he said. “I don’t know how she did it, but my mother always managed to bring a family home for Easter, Thanksgiving, Christmas — and even on the holidays that weren’t religious, she always figured a way to help families in need.
“I was always amazed that my mother figured out a way to make it work and I think that part of my DNA I got from her.”
The Hometown Christmas Parade is scheduled for Saturday, Dec. 13 at 11 a.m. The parade route proceeds westward on W. Glendale Avenue, to 58th Avenue and turns south to the de-staging area. Various bands, local businesses and organizations will perform or ride aboard a float during the parade.
All proceeds from the event, along with perishable and nonperishable food donations, will go to support the Phoenix Rescue Mission and Hope for Hunger Food Bank.
In commemoration of America’s 250th birthday, Luke Airforce Base’s Color Guard, Mayor Weiers and his grandsons, and roughly 100 other participants will carry a massive American flag at the front of the parade. The group will stop at 58th Avenue to play the national anthem as well in a show of patriotism.
This year’s Grand Marshal is Mel Martin of Martin Auto Museum. Weiers said that Martin, who is in his 90s, has supplied vehicles for the parade since its inception.
“We wanted someone that is part of the community that makes a difference,” the mayor said. “He supplies us with some of the most beautiful antique monster cars — and why not have a good guy that’s been a big participant in the parade?”
Weiers added that his presence as Grand Marshal will also help to generate foot traffic to Martin’s museum.
Mel Martin is the owner of Martin Auto Museum and the Grand Marshal for the Hometown Christmas Parade.
(Submitted)
According to the mayor and founder of the event and nonprofit organization, the Hometown Christmas Parade is the largest in the state in terms of participants and performers. Despite the scale of the parade lineup, Weiers said the size of the crowd still allows for plenty of attendees to get a good view of the show.
“If you want to come out for a real home-style, fun Christmas and not have to worry about 100,000 people, then you want to come because you can stand on Glendale Avenue for a mile, and I guarantee there’s going to be spaces,” he said.
In its early years, the event was not sponsored by the city, relying entirely on the support of the community at large. Weiers said that in recent years, City Manager Kevin Phelps has waived some of the fees associated with the parade, but that it is brought together and realized largely by Glendale’s residents, local businesses and organizations, as well as some entities outside of the city.
Hometown Christmas Parade’s sponsors include Accident Justice Law Firm, Carrizoza Law Firm, Glendale Community College, Glendale Signarama, Martin Auto Museum, the Peoria Chamber of Commerce, Southwest Gas, SRP, Valley Metro, Valley Pentecostal Church and various other organizations and patrons.
Weiers said that Christmas is unquestionably his favorite holiday and that the occasion holds a lot of sentimental value and significance for him.
“I’ve been married for 43 years and when my wife and I had made the decision to marry, she asked me what I wanted to do and I said, ‘I want to pick the date,’” he said. “She said, ‘what’s so important about the date,’ and I said, ‘someday I’m going to get really old and I’m going to start forgetting things, and I don’t want to forget this day.’
“This, to me, is one of the most important days of my life and I want it to be a day that I’ll remember.”
The mayor explained that he and his wife settled on June 25, as it is exactly 6 months away from Christmas.
With the date rapidly approaching, Weiers said that his hopes for the parade every year remain the same — to raise enough money to support the Food Bank.
“My hopes are always that we raise enough money to make a difference with the Food Bank to help people that are in need and that people leave at the end of the day going, ‘wow, that was great,’” the mayor said. “As a mayor, my job is nothing more than to be a cheerleader, to represent my city the very best I can and to make people understand that Glendale is an incredible community.
“I just love the city of Glendale.”