Santa, meet Spider-Man: Staunton's WallCrawler named Christmas parade grand marshal
STAUNTON — With great power comes great responsibility. And your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man's latest responsibility — grand marshal of the Staunton Christmas parade.
The Staunton Downtown Development Association (SDDA) announced Tuesday that Spider-Man, also known as Staunton's WallCrawler, will be the grand marshal for the Monday evening parade, which begins downtown at 7 p.m.
Staunton's WebCrawler said he was honored to be chosen.
"Seeing so many smiling faces as part of the parade, riding in the SDDA’s little truck, is something I didn't want to pass up," he said. "I owe so much thanks to the Queen City for accepting me as their friendly neighborhood Spider-Man."
The Staunton Christmas Parade is sponsored by Columbia Gas of Virginia and organized by the SDDA with support from the Staunton Kiwanis Club.
Owen Marshall, SDDA's marketing manager, said that Staunton's local Spider-Man has been volunteering his time over the past year throughout Staunton, offering assistance and directions to visitors, sharing information about events and happenings through social media for businesses and organizations, and posing for photos with children and families.
"Spider-Man aligns perfectly with the spirit of the season, spreading joy and kindness, reinforcing a positive message for everyone, young and old," Marshall said.
Spider-Man told the SDDA that he just loves volunteering.
“It's the one thing I know I can do," he said. "I mean, I just want to help people. I'm aware the world can be really bad sometimes, and I certainly don’t have the answers to fix it, but my aunt tells me ‘When you help someone, you help everyone’ and I feel extremely fortunate to have the opportunity to help others.”
This year’s parade theme “A Cozy Christmas” has a total of 120 entries which includes over 42 businesses, 8 youth groups, 28 non-profits, eight religious organizations, six high school bands, six music and dance performance groups and, of course, Santa Claus.
Spider-Man, along with City of Staunton staff, Mayor Steve Claffey, Columbia Gas executives and other downtown holiday characters will cut the ribbons to start the parade Monday at 7 p.m. at Frederick Street in downtown Staunton.
There's also a new parade pre-show starting at 6:15 p.m. which includes special performances and demonstrations by Valley Dance Theatre, Shenandoah Civic Dance Company, Back in The Groove, Revolution Twirlers, Jazzercise and Grandmaster Dong’s Martial Arts! These groups will travel along the regular parade route, stopping briefly at intersections along Beverley Street.
If you can't make the parade in person, you can stream it through the Beverley Street cams, provided by LINGO NETWORKS / MGW at https://lingo-networks.com/livestream
The inclement weather date for the Staunton Christmas parade has been set for Monday, Dec. 4.
More Christmas Parades: Hooray, hooray, Santa's on his way: Area Christmas parades just around the corner
Holiday shopping: Plaid Friday, Small Business Saturday and Artists Sunday: Staunton merchants ready for the holidays
— Patrick Hite is a reporter at The News Leader. Story ideas and tips always welcome. Contact Patrick (he/him/his) at phite@newsleader.com and follow him on Twitter @Patrick_Hite. Subscribe to us at newsleader.com
This article originally appeared on Staunton News Leader: Santa, meet Spider-Man: Staunton's WallCrawler named Christmas parade grand marshal
