The town of Windham is celebrating the 4th of July with its 37th Annual Boom Box
Parade on Monday. Attendants are encouraged to bring a boom box or a radio that
can tune into WILI 1400 AM.
The tradition of bringing a boom box to the parade began in 1986 when
thousands of people marched with their radios as marching band music played on WILI.
The parade begins at 11 a.m. but people are urged to line up at Jillson Square Park beginning at 9 a.m.
The route takes the parade west down Main Street and ends at Memorial Park. Anyone can march or enter a float, according to parade organizers. There is no need to register.
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The Grand Marshall and leader of the parade is radio host Wayne Norman, who has participated in the parade since its first year.
“The parade doesn’t work if you don’t bring a radio,” Norman said in a news release. “No Boom Box? No problem. Just bring any radio and turn it up.”
Past iterations have included marchers holding power drills, parents pushing
children in strollers calling themselves a “Baby Boomers Unit,” and skateboarders.
Local
Safety guidelines include no water spraying, no candy throwing (though marchers can hand out candy), and no reckless operating behavior.
