Murphy Haylee Thompson was one of many parade-goers who arrived early to stake out a prime spot downtown Saturday night for the annual A Very Murphy Christmas celebration.
She and her group, including 16-month-old Grayson Overley, set up their chairs well before 5 p.m. on the corner of Valley River Avenue and Tennessee Street. Clad in a red flannel onesie and nestled in a stroller, Grayson wasn’t quite sure what to make of all the fuss, but he was all smiles as he soaked up the festive surroundings.
More than 30 floats and 100 overall participating groups started their trek a bit after 6 p.m. The temperature dropped to about 55 degrees as the parade progressed, and a clear sky served up the perfect evening for the crowd who came to watch.
“We’ve been coming every year since we moved here in 2017,” said Danielle Olsen of Murphy. “It’s a tradition.”
She, along with husband Coyle and three youngsters, also arrived early, bringing the kids’ sandwich dinner with them. Downtown restaurants were busy as others decided to dine out before watching the procession.
Once the sun began to drop, it grew dark quickly, and folks lining the streets settled in to watch the show. Sirens sounded and horns blew as local volunteer fire departments showed off their holiday-decorated
trucks. Mingled between the creative floats, brightly lit Jeeps, Razors and vintage cars joined the lineup. Kids scrambled after thrown candy under the watchful eye of parade volunteers and law enforcement. Some floats featured music, singing, and air-filled characters such as Snoopy, while others blew streams of bubbles into the crowd.
All of the floats contained dancing, waving people who seemed to be having as much fun, or more, as the spectators. Horses brought up the tail end.
Judges Will Posey, Melody Johnson and Lisa Pursell viewed the passing floats while scoring each for their presentation. Along with bragging rights, the top three were presented with trophies. Best overall went to Erlanger Western Carolina Hospital. Runner-up was snagged by State Employee Credit Union, while Best Holiday Spirit was awarded to Murphy Youth Cheer.
When the parade ended, Mayor Rick Ramsey joined Mayor-elect Tim Radford to officiate over the town’s Christmas tree-lighting ceremony. Joking about using a “Clapper” to turn the lights on, Radford got the crowd to clap twice along with him, and the evergreen finally burst into colors amid a chorus of applause.
Downtown Development Director Laura Lachance said it was the best Murphy parade ever.
“What a wonderful community event that highlighted the hometown spirit that makes people love this town,” she said.