BY SARAH STEPHENS
ELMORE/AUTAUGA NEWS
Photos by Sarah Stephens and Amanda Pevey – EAN
We will have a full gallery of all photos from today on our Facebook page as well.
This year’s Millbrook Revelers Mardi Gras King Ben Robbins, and Queen Shirley Hasse, were in perfect royal form as they joined the procession and parade this afternoon to thousands upon thousands of revelers trying to catch some “throws” along Main Street.
It will be interesting to see the finals estimates of the crowd. But a good guess would be this is one of the largest, if not the largest, crowd in memory. It was a perfect day for a parade with beautiful weather.
“If it wasn’t the biggest crowd we have ever had it is in the top,” Millbrook Police Chief P.K. Johnson said.” He led the parade toting his grandbabies who had their parade wave down, and tossed every bead they had by the end of the parade.
“We are pretty lucky here in Millbrook that we can say this many thousands of people come to visit, and there are no serious issues. We had a few lost parents, but otherwise it was a wonderful day. I really appreciate our citizens, and our guests today, for showing how to have fun without trouble.”
This year marks the 18th Reveler’s Mardi Gras celebration. It is all thanks to a handful of couples who formed the organization many years ago, and wanted to bring a bit of Mardi Gras to Millbrook. The event has grown tremendously over the years, and is now known as the biggest Mardi Gras Parade north of Mobile.
Vendors filled Village Green Park as the Umbrella Stroll took place with Revelers, in full Mardi Gras attire, danced their way along the walking trail. Chung’s Taekwondo performed a demonstration.
There was plenty of food and shopping and kid’s activities, which continued long after the parade made its way down Main Street from Smokehouse Barbecue to just past the park.
Sean Dietrich was the Grand Marshal for the day. He was named an honorary citizen of Millbrook by Mayor Al Kelley.
The talented, southern writer said he was having a blast, as he was bestowed a giant set of Mardi Gras beads to wear, courtesy of the Elmore/Autauga News. The City of Millbrook read a proclamation in Dietrich’s honor, commending him on his skill of writing and for sharing his talent.
Thank you to the Revelers for yet another fantastic Mardi Gras celebration. Thank you to the vendors, and the Millbrook Police who watched the crowd, worked traffic and worked to keep everyone safe and free to let the good times roll.
For more information about the Millbrook Revelers, visit their website at millbrookrevelers.org.
