Community News
Forest Ridge Holly Day Parade and Fair Is a Success By Debby Teich
O
ver 1,000 Davie residents gathered
last month to enjoy fun, food and festivities at the 14th Annual Forest Ridge Holly Day Parade and Fair. Joan and Ken Steinmetz chaired the event, while former Miami Dolphins players Sean Hill and Chris Conlin served as the parade’s Grand Marshals. Friends and neighbors created floats by decorating cars, boats, bicycles, scooters and even dogs. They threw candy and beaded necklaces to the crowds that lined the streets. Some of this year’s VIPs included Davie Mayor Judy Paul, Town Councilwoman Susan Starkey, Miami Shriners, Forest Ridge Women’s Club, Davie Community Emergency Response Team, Everglades High School Marching Band, Everglades High School ROTC and Sea Cadets,
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local beauty queens, Puppet Network’s Joplin and Bowie, the Grinch, Santa and more. The parade also sponsored a food drive with the Hope Outreach Center. Pure Dynamics Dance Studio won for Best Float. Some of the other winners included: Best Use of Theme: Forest Ridge Women’s Club, Best Mini Float: Bella’s Hair; and Best Marching Entry: Gloria Day Drumline. After the parade several hundred neighbors and their families moved to the Forest Ridge Greens for the fair. They enjoyed refreshments, hot dogs, baked goods, crafters, professional photos with Santa, inflatables, face painting, balloon twisting, games, arts and crafts, raffles, men’s frozen t-shirt contest, finger printing lab for kids, and more.
There were also live stage performances by South Florida Cloggers, Forest Ridge Women’s Club, Pure Dynamics Dance Studio, Ava Tracht Singers, St. David’s Choir, St. David’s Cheerleaders, the Enjoyous Band, and many more. Lorraine Hofheinz has been on the committee since the event’s inception. She coordinated and rode on the first Lords & Ladies float 14 years ago with her son and his closest friends, and still remembers it well. She says that the event requires a lot of preparation, but it is well worth it. “I can’t imagine another community with the camaraderie I’ve found in Forest Ridge,” said Hofheinz. For information, visit www.hollydayparade.com.