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ENTERPRISE, AL- March 17, 2009 - It's billed as "The World's Smallest St. Patrick's Day Parade", and if you see it, you'll know why. It has only one marcher and it lasts about 10 minutes.
A green-clad crowd lined both sides of College Ave (one block of it, anyway) as the lone flag-waving participant marched to the tune of Irish music and hearty applause, pausing periodically to hand out treats and pose for pictures.
This year's marcher was Leigh Ann Smith, who won the honor by winning a fund-raising competition held by the parade's sponsor, the Enterprise Chamber of Commerce.
Leigh Ann chaired the Rawls Ball Committee, which recently raised approximately $5,000 for the S.O.S Animal Shelter.
The parade began in 1993 as a way to recognize a seldom-celebrated holiday in Enterprise. "We realized that we could never have the largest St. Patrick's Day parade, so decided to have the smallest", said Chamber President, Phil Thomas.
The parade has had many marchers, including the late Pat Donahue who created the costume and generated media attention from news and entertainment media all over the world. The parade has been featured on CBS Sunday, National Public Radio, and other media outlets. "I've done interviews with stations from Toronto, Detroit, and even stations in Ireland", said Thomas.
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