By Chris Barber
Contributing Writer

In a merger seldom if ever seen in the Kennett Square Memorial Day Parade, the band members from Kennett and Unionville high schools joined as one to bring music to the streets.

As the blue flying banners appeared to approach Broad Street, it appeared the Longhorns were close on their way, and the Demons would probably follow up shortly.

But then there was a buzz among spectators:

“Wait! Look! They’re both there! They’re all in there together! Kennett and Unionville bands are combined! Look at the T-shirts! Some have the K and others have the Longhorns.”

For the first time in most parade attendees’ memories, the traditional rivals separated by three miles up Route 82 were playing their music together.

The banners waved by the single band front were plain blue and did not specifically identify one school or the other.

Kennett Consolidated School District Superintendent Kimbery Rizzo Saunders observed later, “We are excited to see our bands working together in honor of all who have given so much for our country. It exemplifies the spirit of community and cooperation.”

One parade official observed later, “It was great. We never had that before.”

The annual parade stepped off the gathering site on South Broad Street promptly at 10 a.m. on Monday.

The route took them up Union Street, over the railroad bridge, then a right onto Cypress Street. They marched one block to State Street (the middle of town) and then moved west to Union again for the hike north out to the Union Hill Cemetery.

It has been widely rumored in the past that the jog eastward to Broad Street was in order to ease the intensity of the slope on Union Street approaching State Street, where vehicles, especially the old ones, occasionally stalled.

The Memorial Day Parade returns annually and regularly attracts several thousand attendees – many of them from out of town. Kennett’s parade is generally referred to widely as the largest Memorial Day Parade in Chester County. The spectators, many of them with folding chairs, arrived early and lined the sidewalks all the way from the start to the Union and State streets intersection.

They were joined by the usual balloon vender and pretzel sellers. The music greeted the crowd early-on, starting at 9:30 a.m.

Among those who marched were many folks familiar to the hometown watchers. They included the Kennett High School Alumni Band, The Mighty Writers, the Kennett Fire Trucks, the elegant participants in Mexican dress, the Episcopal Church members and the Mexican drummers, among others. But there were also many marchers from beyond the local neighborhoods who were also familiar to hometown folks.

They included the dragon that swoops from one side of the street to the other; the man on stilts who juggles; the unicycle riders; Elsie, the restored fire truck from West Grove; several tractors; and the re-enactors who shoot guns into the air.

In the spirit of diversity there were many groups from the local Mexican community and a Viking Ship float bearing the flags of Denmark, Sweden and Finland.

The grand marshals, who led the parade behind the opening color guard, were Vietnam War veterans Michael DeFazio of the U.S. Air Force and Ron Taylor of the U.S. Marines.

Government officials included County Commissioner Eric Roe, State Rep. Christina Sappey and Kennett Square Mayor Matt Fetick.

Rev. Jim Mundell, who on Saturday offered the invocation and benediction at the Avon Grove Memorial Day Parade, said he was scheduled to speak at the Kennett Square Memorial Tribute Ceremony at the Union Hill Cemetery following the Saturday Parade.

This year’s parade, while not appearing as greatly attended as in several previous years, still attracted thousands of spectators from the borough and beyond.