To Be Held In Downtown St. Louis
Thursday, November 26, 2009
Mike Shannon will help his home town kick off the holiday season in his role as Grand Marshal of the AmerenUE Thanksgiving Day Parade. "We are absolutely thrilled to have a great St. Louisian like Mike Shannon as our Grand Marshal this year to help us celebrate the start of the holiday season and raise money for local charities," said John Nickel, chairman of parade organizer Christmas in St. Louis.
A St. Louis native, Shannon broke into the big leagues with the St. Louis Cardinals in 1962 and became the team's regular right fielder during the 1964 World Championship season. During the 1964 Series opener vs. New York, Shannon hit a game-tying, two-run homer off Whitey Ford as St. Louis went on to defeat the Yankees in seven games. In 1967 Shannon was moved to third base to make room for newly acquired right fielder Roger Maris, as the Cardinals went on to win two straight National League pennants in 1967 and '68 as well as the 1967 World Series. His career was cut short by nephritis, a kidney disease, in 1970. He joined the Cardinals front office in 1971 as assistant director of promotions and sales and entered the broadcast booth in 1972.
Throughout his 37-plus years as a radio broadcaster for the Cardinals, Shannon has also made appearances for the Cardinals television broadcasts, including as a pre-game analyst for FSN Midwest.
Celebrating its 25th year, the 2009 AmerenUE Thanksgiving Day Parade will step off at
8:45 a.m. on Thursday, November 26, 2009 from the corner of Washington Avenue and
North 4th Street in downtown St. Louis. The theme of this year's parade is "Holiday Magic" in celebration of the holiday spirit and in cooperation with new parade sponsor and partner, The St. Louis Convention & Visitors Commission, which organizes a series of downtown events and activities under the "Holiday Magic" theme. This annual event is hosted by Christmas in St. Louis along with presenting sponsor AmerenUE, major sponsors Schnuck's and US Bank, and media partners KMOV-TV Channel 4 and Clear Channel Radio. Other sponsors include Switch, Lou Fusz Automotive, Hilton Ballpark, and the National Parks Service.
In addition to the festivities in the streets and special performances on the Entertainment Stage from 8:00-9:00 a.m., there will be a live TV broadcast on KMOV-TV Channel 4 from 8:00-11:00 a.m.
Honorary Grand Marshal: The 2 Millionth Eagle Scout, Anthony Thomas will serve as this year's honorary Grand Marshal. The Boy Scouts of America are celebrating their 100th anniversary this year, and way better way to honor the Scouts than by inviting the 2 Millionth Eagle Scout to St. Louis. Anthony Thomas is a junior at Academy of Holy angels in Richfield, Minnesota, and has been involved in Scouting since age 7. A member of Northern Star Council's Troop 471 at Prince of Peace Lutheran Church in Burnsville, Minnesota, Anthony credits Scouting for his love of the outdoors and his commitment to service. Adopted from Korea, Anthony volunteers as a counselor to Korean adoptees at Camp Choson. He also is active in his church and recently lettered in Service at his school. Anthony will spend part of his summer in New Orleans to help with ongoing clean up work following Hurricane Katrina.
Route: Parade begins at Broadway and Washington, proceeds East on Washington for 1 block before turning South on 4th Street. The Parade will continue South on 4th Street, turn West on Market and continue past City Hall to it's dispersal at 14th Street.
Units: Over 100 units will make up this year's parade including 15 festive holiday floats,
11 marching bands, giant balloons, mounted units, the Shriners' motorcycles, antique and classic cars, dancers, clowns, Fredbird, animals and much more, offering something for parade viewers of all ages and interests.
Christmas in St Louis 2009 Featured Charities:
Ride On St. Louis
Ride On St. Louis was founded in 1998 and was the first equine-assisted therapy program to operate in the South County area. The program is dedicated to using equine-assisted therapy to achieve emotional, mental, physical, and spiritual benefits for the developmentally and physically disabled, at-risk youth, and assisted-living adults.
Logos School
Logos School is an independent, not for profit, therapeutic, educational agency serving students in grades 7-12. Logos School is dedicated the assisting students and their families with needs that have not been met in the traditional school environment. Logos helps students who struggle with depression, attention deficit disorders, Asperger's Syndrome, learning disabilities, behaviour disorders, poor motivation, anxiety, low self-esteem, substance abuse and other challenges.
Logos School was founded in 1970 in St. Louis Missouri and has educated and helped over 1,400 students. 95% of the students attending Logos School graduate for high school and 90% of Logos graduates go on to college.
About The Christmas in St. Louis Organization
Founded in 1985, this 501(c)3 organization was formed for two purposes
- Provide support for youth charities
- Welcome in the Holiday Season by unifying many different St Louis activities (tree lighting, decorations, the Parade) and bringing in visitors to the area.
Mission Statement: Christmas in St. Louis (CISL) and the Christmas in St. Louis Foundation (Foundation) are comprehensive volunteer community-focused, non-profit organizations with distinct, yet complementary missions.
CISL is a civic organization dedicated to adding to the community's celebration of the holiday season by coordinating Christmas lighting and decorations and thereby increasing tourism, shopping, dining and hotel usage in the St. Louis area during the holiday season.
The Foundation is a charitable organization dedicated to assisting and supporting, primarily through promotion and marketing, numerous local charities during the holiday season.
Apparel: For special "Christmas in St Louis" Apparel, blankets, hats, "stocking stuffers" and Parade wear, visit www.christmasinstlouis.org and click on the link.
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For information about Mike Shannon,
or to arrange an interview with
Mike Shannon, please contact: Anne Carroll
314-345-9908
For Additional Information about
The AmerenUE Thanksgiving Day
Parade, or about Christmas In
St. Louis, please contact: Donna Andrews
314-992-0654
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