Stock show parade offers family-friendly diversion

MERCEDES - Dora Chavez said this might be the last time she and her children see the Rio Grande Valley Livestock Show parade.


"We're moving to Missouri, so I told them to enjoy it because it's their last parade," Chavez said. "We can come back during Spring Break, but I just wanted them to have fun today."


Hundreds of people lined at least 10 blocks of Texas Avenue on Saturday, filling sidewalks and empty parking lots as bands, trail riders and beauty queens made their way down the street and into the stock show grounds for the 69th annual event.


This year's parade had about 135 entries, said Rodney Robinson, a member of the parade planning committee.


"Oh, yeah, this is pretty much typical for the parade," Robinson said. "We have a lot of antique farming equipment, three or four trail rides, car clubs, bands and floats."


Chavez said she remembers being part of the parade as a high school student and wanted her children to experience the same thrill.


"This is a small town, and this is probably the only big event we have in Mercedes," Chavez said. "I have never seen a fight or people arguing over spots. People really come together as a community and that's what it's about."


The family showed up two hours early to enjoy a day out and browse over the various items vendors were selling. Chavez's children were dressed in Western wear, with her daughter, Georgina, 3, in a white cowgirl outfit with red fringe.


"She wore it last year, and the skirt was a little long, but this year it fits better," Chavez said.


Diana Lozano set up shop underneath a tent, selling drinks and snacks to people walking through the crowd. Families sat under tents next to her, equipped with bags of toys and snacks.


"We've been doing very well today," Lozano said. "We've been here since this morning so we've seen everyone set up."


Dora Alaniz, of Weslaco, and her daughter, Rhyanna, showed up half an hour before the parade started, opting for a more spacious patch of sidewalk to watch the entries pass by.


Alaniz said it was the first time her daughter had been to the parade and Rhyanna was excited to see one thing: the horses.


"She kept asking me, ‘Are we going to see horses?'" Alaniz said.


The entertainment value of the stock show itself is what really brought them out early to the parade, she said.


"A lot of people end up going to the stock show following the parade," Alaniz said. "That's what we're going to do."


Melinda Peña, of Elsa, said she wished she had shown up to the parade an hour earlier. But as she watched her children and nephews playing with plastic pirate swords, she said it was still a great afternoon.


"The parade and crowds have been getting bigger," Peña said. "But we'll probably go to the stock show tomorrow."