By allowing ads to appear on this site, you support the local businesses who, in turn, support great journalism.
Thousands show community support for annual Richmond Hill Christmas Parade
Use this kid grinch
A young "Grinch" was seen in Saturday's Richmond Hill Christmas Parade. Click on the photo slideshow link for 19 other pictures. - photo by Photo by Mark Swendra

WATCH VIDEO of the parade

VIEW our PHOTO SLIDESHOW

John Dunivan has been bringing his family to the annual Richmond Hill Christmas Parade since moving here in 2005. He, and several others who lined the streets for this year's parade on Saturday morning, shared the same opinion as to what they like most about the event.

"It's community. That's Richmond Hill," Dunivan said, as his family joined thousands of others along Ford Avenue, taking advantage of unseasonably warm temperatures -- a little too warm for some.

"It's December ... and I'm fanning myself." he said.

Dunivan's two sons were in the parade, one with the YMCA, and another with the football squad.

Kelly Burcham, of Georgetown, brought her four children to the parade, and said she loves the small town feel. "I enjoy the camaraderie with friends," she said. "Everyone seems to know each other."

This year's parade theme was "A Storybook Christmas," starting near the primary and elementary schools, making its way west on Ford Avenue, before turning into J.F. Gregory Park, approximately two hours after it began.

The grand marshal was Bonnie Proctor, appearing in a red convertible at the beginning of the route. Proctor has been part of the planning committee for the Great Ogeechee Seafood Festival, since the beginning.

The 22nd annual parade featured high school marching bands from Bryan, Liberty and Chatham counties, churches, dance troupes, scout organizations and others, including all of the local dignitaries representing government and public safety. 

Boy Scouts Pack 486 won the Judge's Award for best entry. Richmond Hill Methodist Church won the Mayor's Choice Award. Dancing Unlimited was awarded the Crowd Pleaser honor.

Of course, no Christmas parade is complete without a visit from Santa Claus, who waved to spectators atop a Richmond Hill Fire Department engine truck, as the finale to the event.

Children couldn't get enough of the super heroes like Spiderman and Captain America, and battled each other on the curb for the best positioning to catch candy, thrown from the parade floats.

Tiffany Nutter, of Richmond Hill, brought her two young children, Jake and Reagan, to the parade, and she said the endless supply of candy that was tossed means additional toppings for their gingerbread house at home.

Christmas Parade category winners

Commercial Business Float:
1st - Coastal Electric
2nd - Toni Sauls
3rd - Randy Bocook Real Estate

Non-Profit Float:
1st - New Beginning Community Church
2nd - Richmond Hill Methodist Church
3rd - Fort McAllister State Park

Performing Groups:
1st - Dancing Unlimited
2nd - Life Moves
3rd - Richmond Hill Karate

Youth Groups:
1st - Boy Scouts Pack 486
2nd - Girl Scouts
3rd - Boy Scouts Pack 400

Marching Bands:
1st - Richmond Hill High School
2nd - Liberty High School

Judges Award -- Boy Scouts Pack 486

Mayor's Choice Award -- Richmond Hill Methodist Church

Crowd Pleaser -- Dancing Unlimited

Sign up for our E-Newsletters
Later yall, its been fun
Placeholder Image

This is among the last pieces I’ll ever write for the Bryan County News.

Friday is my last day with the paper, and come June 1 I’m headed back to my native Michigan.

I moved here in 2015 from the Great Lake State due to my wife’s job. It’s amicable, but she has since moved on to a different life in a different state, and it’s time for me to do the same.

My son Thomas, an RHHS grad as of Saturday, also is headed back to Michigan to play basketball for a small school near Ann Arbor called Concordia University. My daughter, Erin, is in law school at University of Toledo. She had already begun her college volleyball career at Lourdes University in Ohio when we moved down here and had no desire to leave the Midwest.

With both of them and the rest of my family up north, there’s no reason for me to stay here. I haven’t missed winter one bit, but I’m sure I won’t miss the sand gnats, either.

Shortly after we arrived here in 2015, I got a job in communications with a certain art school in Savannah for a few short months. It was both personally and professionally toxic and I’ll leave it at that.

In March 2016 I signed on with the Bryan County News as assistant editor and I’ve loved every minute of it. My “first” newspaper career, in the late 80s and early 90s, was great. But when I left it to work in politics and later with a free-market think tank, I never pictured myself as an ink-stained wretch again.

Like they say, never say never.

During my time here at the News, I’ve covered everything that came along. That’s one big difference between working for a weekly as opposed to a daily paper. Reporters at a daily paper have a “beat” to cover. At a weekly paper like this, you cover … life. Sports, features, government meetings, crime, fundraisers, parades, festivals, successes, failures and everything in between. Oh, and hurricanes. Two of them. I’ll take a winter blizzard over that any day.

Along the way I’ve met a lot of great people. Volunteers, business owners, pastors, students, athletes, teachers, coaches, co-workers, first responders, veterans, soldiers and yes, even some politicians.

And I learned that the same adrenalin rush from covering “breaking news” that I experienced right out of college is still just as exciting nearly 30 years later.

With as much as I’ve written about the population increase and traffic problems, at least for a few short minutes my departure means there will be one less vehicle clogging up local roads. At least until I pass three or four moving vans headed this way as I get on northbound I-95.

The hub-bub over growth here can be humorous, unintentional and ironic all at once. We often get comments on our Facebook page that go something like this: “I’ve lived here for (usually less than five years) and the growth is out of control! We need a moratorium on new construction.”

It’s like people who move into phase I of “Walden Woods” subdivision after all the trees are cleared out and then complain about trees being cut down for phase II.

Bryan County will always hold a special place in my heart and I definitely plan on visiting again someday. My hope is that my boss, Jeff Whitten (one of the best I’ve ever had), will let me continue to be part of the Pembroke Mafia Football League from afar. If the Corleone family could expand to Vegas, there’s no reason the PMFL can’t expand to Michigan.

But the main reason I want to return someday is about that traffic issue. After all, I’ll need to see it with my own eyes before I’ll believe that Highway 144 actually got widened.

Latest Obituaries