By Alysia Santo
Matthew Gaisi said his daughter, Kayla, didn’t want to come to the Ragamuffin Parade in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, this Saturday, “She didn’t want to look too raggedy,” he said. When she heard she could wear what she liked, she changed her mind. “I’m an enchantress,” she said, showing off her black and purple sparkly dress.
Kayla and her costume joined hundreds of other Pretty Princesses, Mario Brothers, and Karate Kids at this year’s 44th annual Ragamuffin Parade in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn. Over 4,000 kids turned out to march in the parade. It was the biggest turnout ever, with kids from 26 schools, mostly from District 20 in southwest Brooklyn.
The ragamuffin tradition in Brooklyn traces back to the 1930’s, where it began as a Thanksgiving tradition. “Kids used to walk around door to door in shabby clothes and say, any money for Thanksgiving?” said Ted General, a member of the parade’s board since its roots in 1967. It started as a way to discourage Halloween trick or treating.
“One of the driving forces was the razor in an apple kind of stories,” said General. In the beginning, the theme fit the title. Kids wore torn clothes, “maybe put makeup on their faces and what not,” he said. But it all changed a few years later, he said, when prizes were introduced for best costume, “It just became a lot more competitive.”
The Antique Automobile Association of Brooklyn led the parade with two-dozen cars. John Ledwith drove his 1939 Cadillac LaSalle. He had a Raggedy Anne doll propped up in the back seat to emphasize the ragamuffin theme. A Ford Model-T followed close behind as the car buffs in the crowd ooed and ahed.
The pre-Halloween mob of children appeared behind the cars. There were no organized formations here, just block after block of children running circles around their parents and each other. Two boys had a sword fight in their Star Wars costumes. A demure pair of princesses, holding hands, almost tripped over them.
The parade ran on 3rd Ave. between 76th to 92nd Street, the main commercial strip of Bay Ridge. Among small giveaways for the participants there were “magic” glow in the dark wands, light-up sunglasses, and stuffed toys.
At the end, six proud winners of the handmade costume contest sat on their prizes, a bicycle for each. The winning outfits included a Wolverine and a Raggedy Anne. The mother of one of the winners, a boy dressed as a cannoli, said, “We made it because we knew it would be different.”
Local politicians took the opportunity to mingle. Congressional hopeful Michael Grimm and Councilman Vincent Gentile shook hands with potential voters. State Senator Marty Golden was also present. His wife Colleen is the president of the Ragamuffin Parade Committee.
Saturday’s parade and “Senior Idol” contest lead up to Sunday’s 37th annual Third Avenue Festival. With a “green theme,” it will feature the Cannonball Art Project, and local businesses will get a chance to show off what makes them environmentally friendly. There will be food, music, and dancing to round out a weekend that residents and local businesses look forward to all year. Larry Schiller, president of the Antique Automobile Association of Brooklyn said, “It’s a big weekend in Bay Ridge. It’s kind of the last event of the season.”
Leave a Reply