Frankie Vieyra loves a parade.

More specifically, Vieyra loves the Nebraskaland Days Parade. She loves it so much, in fact, that she has not missed the annual parade in nearly 40 years!
“I’ve been there for years and years. Every year,” Vieyra said. “I wouldn’t miss it.”

Vieyra said she and her husband, Louis, used to find a spot for themselves and their six children in front of the bakery on the north side of the parade route.
“My husband worked at the railroad and did painting on the side, but the day of the parade was his day. He always took it off,” she said.

After their children grew up, Vieyra said she continued to take her grandchildren to the parade each year. It wasn’t long before the young-at-heart mother had formed a family tradition that has yet to be broken.

“We eventually moved to our spot in front of McDaid School there by the church,” she said. “For many years now we have had our place there.”

Vieyra said she has learned to prepare for the parade well ahead of time. She said the preparations begin the night before the parade when they make a trip downtown to put out lawn chairs to hold their places in front of the church.

“I’m always happy because they are there when we come back the next day,” she laughed.

On parade day, Vieyra said she prepares a lunch and fills a cooler with beverages for the family to enjoy during the parade.

Whether the day dawns cool and gloomy or hot and sunny, it matters little to Vieyra.

“It’s been hot a few years and it’s rained a few years, but we’re always there,” she said.

Vieyra said the family usually arrives early, about 9 a.m., on parade days and after they get situated, they just sit back and prepare to enjoy the show.

Vieyra said she especially enjoys seeing the marching bands and the horses, but she really likes everything about the parade.

“Every year there is something a little bit different, but through the years there are a lot of things that are the same, which I enjoy,” she said.

Vieyra said she has met many people on parade day and she always enjoys seeing familiar faces and catching up with old friends. She also said she cherishes the time she gets to spend with her family.
“I am 83 now and it seems that at my age I would have kind of slowed down on it, but the children still come around and I like to go with all of them,” she laughed. “I have great-grandchildren now that I take to the parade.”

Creating a float is a complicated process

A parade would just not be a parade without the floats.

In nearly every parade, colorful floats glide smoothly along the parade route, drawing “oh’s” and “ah’s” from the cheering crowd. Most of the fans, however, will never realize just how much work is involved in creating a float.

Holly McCoy of First National Bank has volunteered to help make the bank’s Nebraskaland Days float for about five years. She said it is a complicated process, but also a lot of fun.

McCoy said the process usually begins in February, when a chairperson is selected to head up the float committee. She said the first mission of the team is to get ideas from everyone in the bank. This usually involves an “idea raffle,” and the winners are given a box of cookies.
McCoy said it’s best to have the float drawn out by Memorial Day and supplies ordered by the first of June. She said it’s always a challenge to order all the supplies that will be used in the float.

Last year, for example, they had to order enough chicken wire to wrap around the outside of the flatbed trailer and to use for the paper mache animals that adorned the float. Pomps, the little pieces of tissue paper that add color and texture to the floats, are almost always part of the order.

McCoy said they order a lot of their supplies from places such as the Oriental Trading Company, but they purchases items locally whenever possible.

One of the most important, and most costly, items to order is the candy that will be handed out on parade day. Last year, McCoy ordered 12 cases of candy and ended up with just a half a box.
By the first of June, supplies are usually in and work begins on the float. McCoy said it can be a long, drawn out process depending on how elaborate the float is.

Last year, the team of bank employees and their spouses put in about three weeks of nightly work. She said there are usually a lot of volunteers, especially on the last two nights before the parade.

Sometimes no matter how well you plan, things go awry. For instance, last year’s float had a jungle theme. McCoy said they carefully measured and planned for the height of the float, but on parade day they could not get float out of the warehouse because of the height of the palm trees.

Finally, after an inch by inch process that took about an hour and a half, the float was free and could be moved to the parade line. Judging takes place right before the parade begins and the winners are given a banner to carry.

Although First National Bank has a long history of winning entries, McCoy said that is not a pressure for her.

“I think it’s just something fun. You will hear the people as you are walking along with your float saying things like, ‘That’s really cool,’ and that makes it worth it,” she said.