The 39th Annual Blade Holiday Parade stepped off at 10 a.m. today, Saturday, Nov. 14, in downtown Toledo, kicking off the holiday season with giant balloons, local marching bands, clowns, horses, colorful floats and Santa Claus himself.

The route ran from N. Summit St. and Jefferson Ave., turned left onto Jackson Blvd. to Huron St., and finished down Washington St. This year’s Grand Marshal was Bay View Yacht Club, one of more than 60 participating organizations — BVYC alone handed out 2,280 books along the route. Street closures began at 8 a.m., and streets reopened about 20 minutes after the parade ended.

Sources: The Blade parade page and Toledo.com listing.

Image: Wikimedia Commons