Sham-rocking and rolling – St. Patrick’s Day Parade celebrates 40 years

Summer may be prime time for parades and community festivals, but if you’re Irish in any way, be it by blood or in spirit, St. Patrick’s Day is the day to celebrate Irish culture and heritage.

For 40 years revelers have been gathering for a St. Patrick’s Day Parade in Le Center, and Saturday’s festivities brought a crowd of many clad in green and filled with joy.

“This was really a great small-town parade,” said parade-goer Anna Wolf.

Wolf, who lives in Minneapolis, said this was her first time attending the parade and came because her best friend is from the area.

She said she was impressed with the size of the event and loved the fact that drinking was acceptable while she watched each float go by, something she is not used to being able to do at other parades.

“You get to drink at this parade,” Wolf said with amazement.

This year’s parade included a lineup of more than 30 floats that included royalty, clans, bagpipers, and more.

Matt Wallskog, who is a board member and emcee for the Le Sueur County St. Patrick’s Day Celebration, said that one of his favorite parts of the parade was seeing and hearing the bagpipers from the Brian Boru Irish Pipe Band perform.

“We have had nothing to that level before,” Wallskog said, adding that having the band was an extra special touch to celebrating the 40th year of the annual event. “The quality and number of participants in the band were amazing. They really enhanced the day.”

Wallskog said that the annual event began in 1982 and was started by John Gregory O’Connell, the Le Center American Legion Post 108, and other extremely important individuals and friends in the Le Center area.

“His goal was to promote and preserve Irish heritage,” Wallskog said of O’Connell. “He had a lot of passion for it.”

Since that time the event has grown to the point that a name...

To see more on this story pick up the March 17, 2022 print edition of the Montgomery Messenger.