Hundreds Watch Annual Robbins Parade to Celebrate New School Year
Last month, thousands of Chicagoans lined South Side streets for the Bud Billiken Parade – a back to school celebration.
On Sunday, the village of Robbins, Ill. held its own version of the parade to motivate students to return to class.
For more than two hours, hundreds of Robbins area residents watched floats, drill teams, politicians and officials march in the parade in the center of the village.
“This is a great motivation for the kids,” said Robbins Mayor, Tyrone Ward. “It gets everybody up to go back to school.”
The Robbins Back to School Festival, which started on Friday and ended Monday, also included a gospel concert featuring artists Jenipher Jones, Mary Hampton and Jeanette Williams, at a field near 138th and Trumbull streets.
The event also included a basketball tournament and free books and supplies for youth.
In past years, the festival included an all-African American rodeo show, but it was absent this year from the festival. The rodeo has been a fixture in Robbins area events for decades.
The parade, however, attracted young excited spectators who dashed into the street for candy.
“I like the parade for the candy,” said Amanda Baity, 11, of Robbins. “I mostly like the lollipops.”
Her sister, Emily Baity, 9, agreed.
“I also like the Sour Patch Kids,” Emily said. “But really I like the dancing. I want to be a dancer.”
Jewell Roberson, 84, a retired CTA bus driver and long-time Robbins resident, said he enjoys seeing old friends at the event.
“I always see a lot of people who I haven’t seen in a long time,” Roberson said. “It is a pleasure to see everyone come out.”
Sonja Wilson, a Blue Island resident who was reared in Robbins, also comes regularly to see former acquaintances.
“It’s fun to get a chance to see all your old friends,” said Wilson, 60, a retired hospital administrative assistant. “That’s what makes this so enjoyable.”
Latest Stories
- Treasurer Pappas urges homeowners to pay late taxes and avoid Annual Tax Sale as 23,270 owe less than $1,000
- Stay Safe from Holiday Scams
- Roseland Community Hospital Gives Back To The Community
- AT THREE-YEAR MARK, WELLNESS WEST PUBLISHES PAPERS ABOUT CLOSING HEALTH EQUITY GAP ON CHICAGO’S WEST SIDE
- Couple hosts first Black Men Buy Houses event in Atlanta
Latest Podcast
Peggy Riggins
