Woodbine Terrace's preparations for yesterday's parade in Towson rivaled those of celebrants in Columbia and Catonsville, where residents are known for claiming prime-viewing spots almost a week in advance by chaining together plastic chairs and blocking off swaths of grass with crime-scene tape.
Josh Glikin, 37, said the extra effort to get a good view of the Towson parade was worth it. The Woodbine Terrace residents' new location was far superior to their previous spot at Allegheny and Bosley avenues.
"At the corner, everyone stops marching, dancing and singing," he said. "We set up down there for years, and the groups were all tired from coming up the hill. Now we're downhill a little more, where it's shady."
Eric and Lauren Alperstein of Towson also planned ahead. The family put blankets down the night before and then erected a large canopy yesterday on Allegheny Avenue about a block east of the Woodbine Terrace group.
The shade allowed Eric Alperstein to work on his laptop during the parade, while protecting Lauren and their four boys, ages 17 to 8, from the sun and possible rain.
"I was scared people were going to get mad at us, but no one has said anything," Lauren Alperstein, 38, said of the canopy. Eric's "on call for work, but he won't miss the parade. And I don't think my kids will ever grow old of it," she said.
Twins Charles and Thomas Wit, 2, are just old enough to understand the concept of a parade. Both frantically waved American flags during the procession of firetrucks, bands, motorcycles, antique cars, military veterans and Grand Marshal "Chef Duff" Goldman and his gang from Charm City Cakes.
Charles stopped whipping around his flag only to rave about the fire engines, his favorite part. "They've been talking about the parade for weeks," said their mother, Patti Wit of Lutherville. "And they woke up this morning and said, 'Is it parade day?'"
For Harvey Hough and Victoria Sigismondi of Owings Mills, the fireworks at the Inner Harbor provided the backdrop for a memorable moment.
As the finale splashed across the sky, Hough proposed to his girlfriend of six years.
"What more could you ask for?," said Sigismondi. "Baltimore City, fireworks and a proposal."
nicole.fuller@baltsun.com
kevin.rector@baltsun.com
melissa.harris@baltsun.com
