F is for flower
They say April showers bring May flowers. Now that it’s official May, I’m happy to see all the trees and flowers blooming (which also means allergy season isn’t too far away either). The official flower of Spokane is the Lilac and we’re known as “The Lilac City.” But do you know how our city got that nickname?
The idea to promote Spokane as “The Lilac City” came in the early 1930s when the local garden club was encouraged by community leaders to plant lilac bushes throughout the city.
Ironically, the lilac is not native to Spokane. According to local legend, the first lilac bush arrived in Spokane in 1882, traveling all the way from Minnesota in a trunk. Lilacs became so popular that city leaders encouraged gardeners to plant lilacs throughout the city.
The first Lilac Festival was held in 1938 and soon after Spokane became known as “The Lilac City”. The first parade comprised of a single float and seven decorated cars. By 1940, the festival and parade had added the first Lilac Queen, Shannon Mahoney, and by the end of the decade, the parade had grown from one float to 30 floats and 40 marching bands.
I love the parades and after a two-year break due to Covid 19, I’m happy to see both the
Spokane Jr. Lilac Parade and the
Spokane Lilac Festival Armed Forces Torchlight Parade coming back to the streets of Spokane! As you know, the Jr. Lilac Parade has been run by Rotaract for over 20 years. Rotaract could use our help. Catherine Howell, the President of Rotaract, came to our meeting last week looking for volunteers to help run the Jr. Lilac Parade on May 14th. If you can help, please
click here or contact the
Rotary Office. We really appreciate it.
May 21st is the Spokane Lilac Festival Armed Forces Torchlight Parade. And for the first time in my 20 years of being in Rotary Club #21, Rotary (all area clubs) will be marching in the parade to help promote Rotary to the Spokane Community! The Parade usually starts around 7:30 p.m., but we plan on meeting at Ira Amstadter’s Express Employment Pro’s office on Main Street a few hours ahead of time for some social interaction before heading to our starting spot in the parade. If you’d like to join us in this fun event, please let the
Rotary Office know ASAP so we can have a good headcount of who to expect on the 21st.
So F is for Flower this week, and what better way to celebrate spring than to participate in both the Jr. Lilac Parade and the Spokane Lilac Festival Armed Forces Torchlight Parade! We hope you can join us!
