ASHLAND — The smiles on people’s faces Thursday in Ashland will likely stick around for as long as Town Run stays green, and probably longer.
The holiday that celebrates the life of Ireland’s patron saint in Ashland brought together 35 men wearing kilts — the “real” way — some gaelic alpacas, a giant inflatable leprechaun, hundreds of residents who participated in a walking parade down Main Street, singing of chanteys, some traditional Irish tunes blasting through speakers in the downtown corridor and a green creek — all on the warmest day of the year so far.
Thursday’s high was a comfortable 70 degrees.
Mayor Matt Miller kicked off the sunny, sky-blue day by coloring Town Run a bright green, a new city tradition that started just last year.
Miller said the dye is the same used in cities like Chicago and Tampa. In Chicago, the city uses 40 pounds of the powder and boats drive around to mix it up.
In Ashland, the orange powdered dye, about five cups full, was enough to make the entire length of the creek to stay green for the entire day.
“But we use sticks here,” Miller said, moments before he and Ashland Municipal Court Judge John Good dumped the environmentally-friendly powder into the creek. Miller assured the crowd the powder was approved by the Environmental Protection Agency, and therefore, no aquatic wildlife would be harmed by the substance.
Miller said the festivities in Ashland on Thursday were covered by private donations of around $3,000, and some expenses, like the purchasing of matching kilts, were covered by the mayor himself.
He said the small cost is worth it.
“Last year it was so much fun to see how people responded to turning the creek green,” he said. “All day long, people of all ages, they got out of their cars to get photos, you could see people taking selfies, and that continued until late in the evening until the sun set. After seeing what a wonderful event that was, we knew we were onto something.”
He said he intends the festivities to be an annual tradition moving forward.
“People are so eager to get outside. What better way to do it than on St. Patrick’s Day?” he said.
Bill Jennings, of Ashland, wore his green St. Pattie’s Day shirt to the occasion. His son, Ken, lives in Chicago. He’s witnessed the Chicago River turn green for the Irish holiday.
“It’s a lot bigger than this,” he said, smiling in the high noon sun. “But this — this mayor is doing great things. This is nice.”
Tavin Taylor, 5, of Ashland, said the green creek is “really cool.” He said he wanted to go swimming in it. In fact, he said he’d come back for the parade later in the day with a swimsuit, making his parents laugh.
Corner Park in Ashland filled up with hundreds of people by 4:30 p.m., ready to walk down the lined Main Street to show off their St. Patrick’s Day spirit. The walking parade, which allowed anyone to join, was scheduled to begin at 5 p.m.
It had a bit of a late start because of a late-running piper. Better late than never, the man — donned in full St. Patrick’s Day garb — arrived and blew air into the bagpipes. The inaugural parade was on, led by the piper and 35 of Ashland’s finest donned in matching kilts.
Spectators cheered as their green-dazzled friends, neighbors and families walked by.
The crowd gathered shortly after the walk at Foundation Plaza to announce five candidates for “Ashland’s Shiniest Shamrock.” The five were Amanda Finger, 23; Jessica Quinn-DeLosh, 42; Kerry Cramer, 69; Serenity Warrick, 5 and Blake Swanson, 11.
To narrow down the lone winner, Miller encouraged the crowd to cheer for their favorite as he announced their names. Unsurprisingly, the 5-year-old wearing a green tutu, green-rimmed glasses and leprechaun ears won over the cheering crowd.
To conclude the night, the mayor and his kilted chorus sung, for the last time, an Irish chantey:
“Weigh, hey and up she rises, weigh hey and up she rises, weigh hey and up she rises early in the morning.”
