ANNUAL DIXON MAY FAIR RETURNS, DRAWS LARGE CROWD
Hundreds of fairgoers crowded the sidewalks in the heart of Dixon Saturday, eager to see the 145th Dixon May Fair parade, hosted by the Dixon Chamber of Commerce, which was moments away from beginning.
Waiting to walk the parade route, Dr. Carla Demaray, a practicing chiropractic in Dixon, couldn't contain her excitement. The event, she said, is her favorite part of the Dixon May Fair.
“We just love the parade, you see so many smiling faces,” shared Demaray, who walked with members of her office. “That's what fuels us.”
The day began with the mouthwatering smell of sausage and the sound of sizzling pancakes on the griddle at the Olde Vets Hall. That's where the Dixon Rotary Club hosted the 55th annual Ron DuPratt Pancake Breakfast, an event that celebrated the memory of Ron and his wife Jackie, who both passed away earlier this year.
The couple had performed more than six decades of service to the Dixon community. In their honor, their sons, Greg and Val, were given a letter and Memorial Resolution from State Sen. Bill Dodd's office, and a congressional commendation from Rep. John Garamendi's office.
“They were heavily involved in the community and they believed in Dixon,” Greg DuPratt said. “They gave back as much as they could to the community.”
After breakfast, people dispersed across the parade route to find their spot, which some had even saved the night before. Dixon resident Paul Sheldon, meanwhile, had to improvise.
“We always had to set chairs up the night before and it was even harder finding spots this year,” Sheldon said. “That kind of let us know there was a lot of people out here, partaking in the parade.”
Jose Castaneda of Atwater, who had previously attended sans kids, was excited to experience the event with his 7-year-old son, Jesus, and 2-year-old daughter, Julietta, for the first time.
“This was a really good experience and I wanted my kids to get a taste of that,” Castaneda said.
Soon, the parade began to the roar of the crowd. Participants embodies the “Super Fun” theme. Musicians played a wide variety of music, those sin public office waved, police officers blared their siren, and local businesses strutted their stuff.
Among them was the staff of the Dixon Public Library, who were all dressed up from the Super Mario video game franchise and pushing decked out library carts.
“All the library came together and put on costumes,” Supervising Librarian Raya Gardner said. “We (were) giving out fans because we knew it was going to be a hot day.”
It wasn't uncommon for floats to have people jumping off them to pass out freebies. Demaray was a big hit with the back scratchers she passed out to the crowd.
“They (were) very popular,” Demaray chuckled.
As floats from the Dixon Little League went by, 12-year-old Piper Sheldon Dixon enjoyed the TripleA Pittsburgh Pirates float.
“It was different from the other ones, the whole ship theme, it was different from the other baseball floats,” Piper said.
13-year-old Regan Van Tuyl enjoyed the Lucky Supermarkets huge shopping cart participants rolled around in.
“It was very different, it stood out,” Van Tuyl said.
Once the last parade participant passed by the judges table, the crowd gravitated onto the Fair grounds for a day of events and some more tasty food. While the winners of the best floats have yet to be announced, there was still much fun to be had.
“I would say come out, enjoy yourself and ride the rides,” 16-year-old Saylor Sheldon of Dixon said.
Sunday is the final day of the fair. For more information, visit https://dixonmayfair.com/.