Puerto Rican Day parade in Palm Bay draws 1,000 for 25th anniversary
PALM BAY — As a crowd of more than 1,000 people walked under a sunny October sky through Samuel C. Lopez Way at the entrance of Palm Bay City Hall, waving Puerto Rican flags and dressed in the territory’s red, white and blue colors, Lopez's daughter said she believed her father was watching the parade with pride.
“This is something I think my dad is looking down on now, and saying, ‘Wow, I’m so proud of you, I can’t believe you did this. I can’t believe you did this,’” Samantha Lopez-Bickman, president of this year's parade, said.
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Brevard’s Puerto Rican Day Parade celebrated its 25th anniversary Saturday afternoon in Palm Bay, with about 42 groups walking the route from the corner of Eldron Boulevard and Malabar Road to City Hall. Following the parade, a multicultural festival was scheduled to run until 7 p.m. Food, information about services in the community, artists and other performers were set to fill the day with fun and culture.
The parade was dedicated to the memory of Samuel C. Lopez, a local community activist and founder of the parade. Lopez died in his sleep Jan. 11, 2021. This was the first Puerto Rican Day parade held since his death.
Founder of the Melbourne-based Florida Puerto Rican/Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, Lopez began his activism nearly three decades ago with questioning the Palm Bay Police Department about policies that he believed profiled Puerto Rican young people.
In more recent years, he protested Melbourne's policy that allowed the Confederate flag to be flown at city-sponsored events, unveiled the Juan Ponce de León statue on State Road A1A south of Melbourne Beach, and supported the renaming of Airport Boulevard to honor Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
“This year’s parade is really special and dear to us,” Lopez-Bickman said. “While it’s joyful really, it’s also very humbling for me and very emotional.”
Erin Julian marched in the parade with Heritage High School as a teen. This year, she brought her 2-year-old daughter, Ellie James, to celebrate her roots.
"She's so little she doesn't understand a lot of it yet," Julian said. "It's just important to show her that even though she doesn't know yet, she'll grow up learning about it."
Ellie, whom Julian said loves parades, waved a tiny Puerto Rican flag as one of the marching bands passed, dancing in front of her mom on the sidewalk. Julian said she was excited for her to see everything Saturday afternoon.
"(I'm excited) for her to be surrounded by the culture," she said. "it's not everyday that we get to do something like this."
The event, Florida’s oldest Puerto Rican Day parade, was put on hold in 2020 and 2021 due to COVID. This year, the parade made a return in conjunction with the multicultural festival, also founded by Lopez.
Jessica Nesmith sat near the sidewalk waiting for the parade to start with her 16-year-old daughter, Shemaiah. The two watched together in anticipation of seeing two of Nesmith's other daughters, who were marching in the parade with Heritage High School's marching band. They've attended at least three times before and were happy to be back this year.
"(My favorite part is) the whole ambience, seeing everything, just hearing our roots all over the place," Nesmith said.
Elba Matthews used to attend the Puerto Rican Day parade in Chicago, and was looking forward to seeing Palm Bay's parade. She said her favorite part of the Chicago parade was "the whole thing."
"(I liked) the feel of it, of everybody coming together, that we have one thing in common, of our family being from Puerto Rico," Matthews said. She was hoping to see the same thing at Palm Bay's parade, as well as the floats.
In addition to being the president of this year's parade, Lopez-Bickman is vice president and acting treasurer for United Third Bridge. The nonprofit, which works to support and educate marginalized groups in Florida and New York, was founded by her father in 1977. She credited others at the nonprofit and community members for helping to pull off the parade’s return.
“Everyone in the community has helped to come together somehow, some way, to make this year’s parade as successful as it’s going to be, and they have helped in some way or another, and I cannot thank them enough,” Lopez-Bickman said.
“We have a really nice lineup this year of artists performing, and I’m so excited that they came and they’re in support of Sam’s legacy.”
Finch Walker is a breaking news reporter at FLORIDA TODAY. Contact Walker at 321-290-4744 or fwalker@floridatoday.com. Twitter: @_finchwalker
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This article originally appeared on Florida Today: Puerto Rican Day parade returns to Palm Bay for first time since COVID
