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These spectators chose a second-story window seat for the best view of a previous St. Patrick’s Day parade in Scranton.
TIMES LEADER FILE PHOTO/PETE G. WILCOX
The canine contingent is always popular at Wilkes-Barre’s St. Patrick’s Day parade. Here, Erin and Patrick Joyce, looking quite Irish, show off Deputy Dog Nana on a previous parade day.
TIMES LEADER FILE PHOTO/JIM GAVENUS
What’s a St. Patrick’s Day parade without a St. Patrick? Jim Moran of Scranton portrayed the beloved snake-driver in a previous Wilkes-Barre parade. Will the saint come marching in again? Show up Sunday and find out.
TIMES LEADER FILE PHOTO/PETE G. WILCOX
When you’re just starting to play the bagpipes, Katrina Patla said, you can’t expect an ideal sound right away.
“It’s very squeaky,” she admitted with a laugh.
After about two years of lessons, Patla’s piping is smooth and sweet. It’s also “powerful and, for me personally, meditative,” the 16-year-old Sweet Valley girl said.
Delighted with her progress, her teacher, Paul Mehl, says Patla is ready to march and play for the first time with the Ceol Mor band in two parades this weekend: Scranton’s 50th annual event, which begins at noon Saturday, and Wilkes-Barre’s 31st annual event, which begins at 2 p.m. Sunday.
Piping and marching at the same time, he said, is no easy feat.
“It’s kind of like having a third lung to fill,” Mehl said.
“You sweat, and I’m sure your heartbeat goes up,” he added. “It must be very healthy, aerobic exercise.”
Patla said she doesn’t mind the exertion. By playing the pipes, she’s carrying on a family tradition started by her older brother, Stephen, who no longer lives in the area.
Besides, it’s exciting to hear the enthusiasm of the spectators, said Patla, who has carried a flag for Ceol Mor in previous parades.
Parade crowds in Wilkes-Barre and Scranton should have lots to cheer about this weekend with pipe-and-drum corps, string bands, high-school marching bands, step dancers, veterans, Irish heritage groups and more.
“We always have giant balloons, and this year there’s going to be a giant green dinosaur, sponsored by Hardware Bar,” Wilkes-Barre special-events coordinator Lore Majikes said.
Then there are the mascots, such as Tux from the Wilkes-Ba