Parade, crawfish, produce are part of Saturday's Azalea festivities
Apr. 4—Expect a lot of blooming going on Saturday at the Muskogee Azalea Festival Parade.
The parade, with the theme Flower Tunes, will be 11 a.m. Saturday along Broadway, from Second to Sixth Streets.
This year's parade grand marshals are Casey Hentges, host of the OETA Saturday morning program "Oklahoma Gardening" and the show's video producer Daniel Farris, said Muskogee Special Projects Manager Joel Everett.
Everett said the show covers all sorts of Oklahoma plants — "flowers, trees, you name it."
"'Oklahoma Gardening' is an OSU sponsored program that's on OETA every Saturday," he said. "It's been on for as long as I can remember. When I was at OSU, my horticulture teacher was the host. It's been on forever."
He said the host and producers are an appropriate choice for parade marshals.
"Really, when I thought about that, I don't know how we have not had them before," he said.
Hentges, Farris and their families will ride a red wagon drawn by a team of six bay Clydesdales owned by Verner Family Clydesdales, Everett said.
This year's parade route will go along Broadway from Second to Sixth Streets. The announcing stand will be at Hunt's Green Space.
Everett said nine floats have been signed up so far, along with a variety of dance/drill teams, car clubs, Shrine clowns and more.
Winners will be announced at 1 p.m. at the announcing stand.
The parade is one of several Saturday events kicking off Muskogee's month-long Azalea Festival.
The Bedouin Shrine will present its third annual Creole Fest, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. west of Muskogee Civic Center.
Shriner Mike Brawley said people can enjoy a variety of Cajun and Creole foods, including gumbo, jambalaya, red beans and rice.
"The number one thing people come out for is the crawfish boil," Brawley said. "They have crawfish and all the fixings that go along with it and we have competitors cooking Creole dishes."
Taster kits are $10 per person.
The three top winners receive cash prizes of $150, $100 and $50.
"Double digit cook teams provide cooking for the competition," Brawley said. "And multiple vendors coming out to provide everything from lemonade to jewelry."
The Hayseed Band will perform at 11:30 a.m.
"We're going to have a great kids' zone with multiple bounce houses, that's always a big hit," Brawley said.
He said he expects at least 500 people. Proceeds benefit the Shrine Temple operations.
Saturday also marks the opening day of Muskogee Farmers' Market, where area producers sell home-grown vegetables, flowers, herbs, eggs and other items. The market opens 8 a.m. at the covered area in front of Muskogee Civic Center.