Fair skies. Family. Friends. Fun.
Buffalo’s AFL-CIO Labor Day parade Monday was a befitting way to mark the unofficial end of summer. Hundreds of union workers, law enforcement personnel, firefighters, elected officials from various levels of government and more all walked in the parade up McKinley Parkway to Cazenovia Park in South Buffalo. Afterward, a cookout was held at the Peter J. Crotty Casino Shelter in the park.
It was a far cry from last year’s parade, which was rained out.
For the Halls, watching the parade is a family affair every year. They have lived along the parade route for years, and every time they set up lawn chairs and invite family over to celebrate. About a dozen people showed up Monday.
“The great grandkids came over for the parade,” Gerry Hall said. “It’s nice just to be out and enjoy the day.”
It was a first-time visit to Buffalo for spectators Brian Watts and Lisa Mackin, who traveled from Pennsylvania for the holiday weekend. They usually go to New York City for the Labor Day weekend, but this year they decided to visit Niagara Falls.
The hotel where they were staying gave them a pamphlet of things to do. One of the featured events was the parade. A bus brought them from the hotel to the parade site.
“It looks like it’s going to be a good time,” Watts said. “I’m positive it’s going to be good, and I wouldn’t mind coming back.”
Cindy Blackford, a union worker at Aurubis Buffalo on Military Road, walks the parade every year with her co-workers.
“It’s important that people understand that our strength is in numbers and that when we stick together with the union, things get done,” she said.
Sporting sunglasses with an American flag covering each lens, Aine Leahey is a bagpipe player with Erie County Sheriff’s Pipes and Drums. Leahey has been performing in the parade annually with her fellow bagpipers for a few years, she said.
“We’re here to support the community,” she…
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