For the first time, HBG participated in this annual event, held this year on May 31.  Enabling us to do so was Geoff Stridsberg, who provided his 1940 Dodge farm truck as the base for our displays.  Thanks to Geoff’s expert care, the truck continues to be a working vehicle; we used it to haul deer fencing and other materials for the Bulb Festival. 

Geoff, pictured  on the running board, is himself a Marine Corps veteran.  The two veterans commemorated on the display banners are uncles of Geoff and former Executive Director Paul Parlato, who accompanied him in the procession from First Lutheran Church downtown to Ferncliff Cemetery.  Tragically, both veterans, Carl Geoffrey Stridsberg and Joseph Cangiamila,  were pilots who died in training accidents—in World War II and World War I respectively.

At more than two hours in length, the Springfield parade is said to be the largest in Ohio and attracts thousands of onlookers.  Greeting our exhibit along the way from young and old alike were smiles, waves, and even applause, a heartwarming show of support for the HBG project.

One should note the large wooden industrial containers in the cargo bed of the truck.  These are donations from Fred Leventhal, a long-time supporter; they are likely to find eventual use as planters at the Garden site or as storage containers.

In October 2010, Geoff once again put the HBG project on public view by driving his truck in the popular South Vienna Corn Festival, another first for HBG.