Great falls mt st patricks day parade

After a two-year hiatus, the Great Falls St. Patrick’s Day Parade will return on March 17, beginning at 4 p.m.

This parade is jointly sponsored by the Great Falls Division of Ancient Order of Hibernians, a fraternal organization of Catholic men who are Irish by birth or descent, and the Downtown Great Falls Association.

The parade will take its usual route from the Civic Center down Central to 8th Street.

This year’s grand marshals are the Ferrin family, Bill and Sue Ferrin of Ferrin’s Furniture and their children, Andy Ferrin and T.J. and Courteney Ferrin.

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The Ferrins are being recognized for their years of contributions to downtown Great Falls.

“It is no secret to the downtown business community that if you need help with an event, you start with the Ferrin family,” according to a release from the Hibernians.

The Ferrin family were designated grand marshals in 2020 but that parade was cancelled due to COVID.

This year, the sponsors are starting a new tradition of honoring a senior member or senior couple for their volunteerism to our community throughout their years in Great Falls. These seniors and their family will accorded a place near the front of the parade so they can be duly applauded for their long time service to Great Falls, according to the Hibernians.

This year’s honorees are Bob and Dot Maronick. Their family goes back more than 100 years in Great Falls, both with heavy Irish lineage, according to the Hibernians.

Their volunteerism to the Great Falls community is lifelong and includes service to St. Peter and Paul; St. Gerards and Holy Spirit Church and grade schools, the University of Providence, meals to families in need, visiting the homebound and sick, and more, according to the Hibernians.

“In many cases, we did not see their service as they often supported families in distress without our knowledge, though we often heard stories from lives they touched,” their daughter, Fran, said in a release.

Entry applications for the parade have been sent out to all participants from the last parade, which was held in 2019. Those who have not received an entry application can find one online, or contact the Downtown Great Falls Association at 318 Central Ave., by phone at 406-453-6151 or call the Boland Agency at 406-453-0371.

Butte may rightfully claim the distinction of being the epicenter of St. Patrick’s Day celebrations in Montana, but Great Falls lacks nothing when it comes to honoring the little bit of Irish in all of us.

A warm spring afternoon and a spreading sense that the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic is now behind us led to what was likely the largest turnout for a St. Patrick’s Day Parade in Great Falls in decades.

“God is shining upon us: that’s what’s happening,” said Daniel Reardon, past State President of the Ancient Order of Hibernians. “We’ve got a great community turn out. I’m really excited to walk down the street and see how many people actually came out to watch this parade. This is a great celebration. Times are changing for the better.“

The Ancient Order of Hibernians is America’s oldest Irish Catholic Fraternal Organization, founded concurrently in the coal-mining region of Pennsylvania and New York City in May, 1836. The Order can trace its roots back to a series of similar societies that existed in Ireland for more than 300 years. Today, the AOH exists in America, Canada, Ireland, England, Wales and Scotland.

“Originally, our brotherhood was formed to help protect the Catholic churches in New York,” Reardon said. “Another part of that was as Irish immigrants would come in we would help them get a foothold in the community. At that time, the Irish were not really looked upon favorably, and we’d help them get set up with housing. We’d help them get set up for work and everything else.”

Great Falls' St. Patrick's Day Parade has been on hold since 2019 because of the COVID pandemic.

“This is a special day for us,” Reardon added, “and it’s been very hard for us the last couple of years not to just go for it and have a parade anyways. To be able to do that now is something to celebrate and it comes with great relief that we can continue toward some kind of normalcy. It’s just fantastic.”

More than 1,000 spectators turned out for the parade, which coursed down its traditional route from the Great Falls Civic Center, up Central Avenue to Sixth Street South. Having Irish blood in your veins was no prerequisite for spectators turning out to participate in the festivities.

“Oh, it’s gorgeous,” said spectator Nancy Snow of the spring weather that graced the parade. “The few times that I’ve been here before there’s been hardly anybody here. Two years of seclusion and it’s time to get out and celebrate.

“Time to soak in some vitamin D at the same time,” said her friend and fellow attendee Marge Sitzmann.