Parade brings Irish luck to city

But for Darby Simmons, a 1990 Towson University graduate, the parade marked the culmination of 12 months of hard work and patient planning.

As general chairman and president for St. Patrick Celebrations, Inc., a non-profit organization, Simmons is in charge of recruiting corporate sponsors and ensuring the festivities go off without a hitch.

"My family has always been in the parade," he said. "I've marched it in for years, starting at age 12."

In the days prior to the parade, Simmons was operating on autopilot, tending to the stressful details of the festivities. But come Sunday afternoon, it was all worth it. "We put on one hell of a parade every year," Simmons said.

The St. Patrick's Day event is Baltimore's biggest and longest-running parade. About 2,000 Baltimoreans participate in it, as 40,000 spectators watch from the sidelines. Simmons estimated 105 marching groups participate each year.

"For about three and a half hours, you're entertained with stuff you don't see every day," Simmons said.

And he's not kidding: floats, bagpipers, mummer groups, marching bands, politicians, and military units all pass by the spectators.

Families typically stake out a spot along the parade route hours in advance. For Simmons, it always comes back to family.

"When you see the older generations marching very proudly down Charles Street, it reminds you of your parents and grandparents," he said. "It always hits me, as a surprise, and makes me think about it."

General chairman is a three-year assignment, and Sunday's parade marked Simmons' first year. He was previously the vice chairman.

"I've always been one for projects, whether it's rehabbing a house, starting a frat, or starting a business networking group, I've always enjoyed that. So with my Irish heritage, and them needing someone to take the reigns, I was willing to take it on," he said. Simmons has been taking projects on for many years. As a freshman at Towson, he became a senator for the Student Government Association, and worked his way up to vice president.

Seeking a social outlet on campus, he got in touch with the national leadership of the Delta Sigma Phi fraternity and became the founding president of the Towson chapter. Simmons is a financial adviser for Legg Mason in Baltimore when he's not tending to the details of the parade.

It costs $120,000 to put on the parade each year, and "it takes all year to beg, borrow, steal, and trade to come up with the money," Simmons said. Major sponsors include Comcast and WQSR radio.

In the months preceding the parade, the committee organizes five major fund-raisers, including the ShamROCK 5K race the day of the parade.

And the work isn't over after Sunday's parade.

"In the past, I've been able to take a four-week siesta, but this year I don't think I'm going to have that luxury," Simmons said.

There are thank-you letters to write, banners to pick up, financial reports to compile -- "one hundred little errands" await Simmons and his committee of volunteers. And it's never too early to plan next year's parade.

The festivities take a whole year of planning, Simmons explained. And because 2006 will mark the St. Patrick's Day Parade's 50th anniversary, the preparations will be even more complicated than usual.

Simmons will spend the spring planning the anniversary parade, and several related new events. In the coming months he will sit down with the parade's major corporate sponsors and discuss the parade's future.

Though the primary parade concern for Simmons is financial, it's a family affair in the end: his mother is the promotions director and his aunt is in charge of pub fund-raisers. The Irish community in Baltimore is essentially one large family, Simmons said, calling it a "very hearty community."

"There's just a lot of Irish pride and heritage in the city, and they have long memories, and luckily they're good at bringing in new blood as well," he said.

Home	Copyright Brian Stelter