SPRINGFIELD – About 3.5 million people show up to line the streets of New York City every year to watch the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, but perhaps a lesser-known secret is that Springfield cooks up one of its own annually on Hayden Bridge Road.
Page Elementary students on Friday, Nov. 21, held their own Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade, where third-grade students crafted floats before parading them through the streets.
Amy Bernatz, the teacher who started the tradition, and has since partnered with third-grade teacher Katie Keeler, put this together every year.
“The third-grade classes have done this event for almost a decade. They research the parade’s history, then work on floats of their choosing at home with their families,” said Allison McGowan, communications specialist with Springfield Public Schools. “At the end of the last school day before the Thanksgiving holiday, they parade down the sidewalk in front of the school.”
McGowan noted that, in the last few years she’s attended, educational assistant Brittany Adair has served as the Master of Ceremonies, playing music and announcing each float, as in the real parade.
It is a real treat for students, teachers, and parents, as students craft some of their favorite characters, including Barbie, Pokémon’s Gengar, and Dodgers player Shohei Ohtani, who was featured on a TOPPS trading card.
“The sidewalk is lined with families taking pictures and applauding. It’s something third graders look forward to every year,” McGowan said.
Known for its variety of larger-than-life helium balloons and floats, and an array of entertainment from marching bands and celebrity performers, the NYC Macy’s Day Parade starts on Central Park West and travels through Midtown Manhattan, ending at Macy’s Herald Square.
It is broadcast nationally on NBC and Peacock to 50 million-plus viewers from 5:30-9 a.m. on Thanksgiving Day, Thursday, Nov. 27.
“You’ll be seeing stars at the 2025 Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade – literally,” according to the department store. “See if you can spot them in blue and white, red and gold, and yellow at various points in the parade lineup.”
This year’s parade features 38 helium balloons – some as tall as a three-story building and as wide as four taxicabs.
Notable balloon characters will include cartoon characters like Dora the Explorer, Buzz Lightyear, Pokémon’s Pikachu and Eevee, Gabby and Pandy Paws, and SpongeBob SquarePants, as well as mascots such as the Pillsbury Dough Boy, Goldbear, and more.
The parade is set to feature 28 floats, from Camp Snoopy to Sesame Street, and World of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.
The show will also include 28 performers, including Foreigner, Tiler Peck, Teyana Taylor, Shaggy, Lil Jon, Busta Rhymes, Luisa Sonza, Matteo Bocelli, and Calum Scott. There will also be 11 marching bands, 33 clown crews, nine performance groups, and 14 specialty units.
