NORTH WEBSTER — The 73rd annual Mermaid Festival parade stepped off along Main Street in North Webster Saturday afternoon, June 23, with more than 60 entries.

The procession started at the CVS south of town and proceeded north to just past North Webster Community Center. Parade watchers lined both sides of the street the length of the route.

When the first entrants reached the judge’s stand, the procession stopped while Lisa Scott sang the national anthem.

The rain which pummeled the areas north and south of town held off during the event and a refreshing breeze countered the heat to make for a perfect parade day.

Most entries adhered to the “Wide World of Sports” theme and included imaginative representations of archery, bowling, soccer, rugby, horse riding, watersports, baseball, auto racing, golf, football and other games.

The themed entries were preceded by the traditional lineup of fire and police departments; this year’s grand marshal, Shoop Sports and Youth Foundation Inc.; the 2018 Person of the Year, Terrill Brown; last year’s Queen of Lakes and her court; this year’s cutie king and queen and their 2008 counterparts; the American Legion; and Marching Warrior Pride from Wawasee High School, the host marching band.

Prizes were awarded for the top three of the seven competing high school bands.

Bremen, John Glenn and Woodlan high schools captured the first-, second- and third-place awards, respectively.

Other bands in the competition were Columbia City, Whitko, Westview and Angola.

PHOTO GALLERY (Photos by Ray Balogh):