The 22nd annual Festival of Lights Parade will get under way 7 p.m. this Sunday in downtown Los Altos.
The one hour parade features hundreds of participants, numerous floats and marching bands from Fremont, Homestead, Los Altos, Mountain View and St. Francis High Schools. The Olde Town Band will return to the parade after an absence of several years.
Organizers anticipate that more than 25,000 sidewalk watchers will view this year's parade.
Joe Leal, who is heading the organization of this year's parade with Brown Taylor said up to 200 people dressed in distinctive costumes will march individually in this year's parade.
Taylor manages the administration of the parade and has secured 65 entries and a group of horse teams for the parade.
According to past president Conrad Heintzelman, the parade is put on by more than 100 volunteers and without them the parade would not be successful. "Everybody tries to help out because the parade is a nice part of Americana," Heintzelman said.
The Festival of Lights Parade started in 1977 as the brain child of Marion Jackston and Hope Higbee. They convinced the Los Altos Village Association to stage the parade after Thanksgiving to get people in the holiday spirit.
The parade has turned into one of the most popular downtown events of the year.
Community organizers hold two major fund-raisers each year to defray increasing parade costs. If the parade is rained out, the event will be rescheduled for the following Sunday, Dec. 5.