PORT TOWNSEND—The annual Rhododendron Festival, which is now in full swing, is an event that demonstrates what is unique about Port Townsend while bringing people together for an old-fashioned good time.
“Rhody is a time where you celebrate seeing everybody,” said Jefferson County Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Teresa Verraes.
“Aside from the parade, which is super fun, it’s great to see people getting ready for Rhody and to see how it brings people together.”
Verraes moved to Port Townsend when she was 7, and the annual Rhody parade — planned this year at 1 p.m. Saturday — was one of the first impressions she had of the town.
“I will always remember the first parade we went to and how it made us want to live here,” she said.
Lynn LeMaster, whose daughter, Teslin, was the 2010 Rhody princess, had a similar experience, coming to town for the first time with her children, who were then 7 and 9, for an exploratory visit that coincided with the Rhody Fest.
“When we moved up here for good a few months later, my kids were asking where the parade was,” she said.
“They thought it was something that was happening all the time.”
Rhody happens but once a year and relies on a network of volunteers to plan the events, parties and parades that take up the week.
The Trike Race was Wednesday, and the Pet Parade was Thursday, but the Kiddie Parade, Bed Races and Grand Parade are still to come.
Grand Parade
The main attraction in the 76th Rhododendron Festival, the Grand Parade, will begin at the corner of Lawrence and Harrison streets at 1 p.m. Saturday. It will proceed to Monroe Street, then turn right on Water Street.
More than 100 organizations have signed up to participate in the parade.
Vic Dirksen, former Jefferson Healthcare hospital administrator, is the grand marshal, and the theme of the parade is “Lights, Cameras, Rhody.”
Rhody isn’t just parades. Several other special events are scheduled, including concerts, a pancake breakfast, a golf tournament, a fish fry and a run.
Here is the schedule of events for today through Sunday.
Today
■ The Rhody Carnival at Memorial Field opens at 3 p.m.
■ The Kiddies Parade will begin at 3:30 p.m., turning from Monroe Street onto Water Street. It will turn right at Adams Street and continue to Washington Street.
Registration for the Kiddies Parade will begin at 2:30 p.m., with participants assembling at 2:45 p.m. at the corner of Water and Monroe streets. Judging will begin at 3:10 p.m.
■ The Bed Race will be at 6:30 p.m.
Registration will begin at 5:30 p.m. at the corner
of Washington and Adams streets, with judging at
6:15 p.m.
■ Six bands will perform at the American Legion Hall, 209 Monroe St., from 4:30 p.m. to
11 p.m. in a “Rockin’ Rhody Concert.” Tickets will be $10 at the door.
Saturday
■ The Elks Lodge, 555 Otto St., will hold a pancake breakfast fundraiser from 7 a.m. to 10 a.m. Tickets will be $5 at the door.
■ The Jim Caldwell Memorial Rhody Festival Golf Tournament will begin at 8 a.m. at the Port Townsend Golf Course, 1948 Blaine St. For more information, phone 360-385-4547.
■ The Rhody Carnival at Memorial Field will open at noon.
■ The Belmont Hotel, 925 Water St., will host a fish fry from noon to 8 p.m. to benefit Kiwanis youth programs. Tickets will be $10 for 12 years and older, and $5 for children 5 to 11.
■ The Grand Parade will begin at the corner of Lawrence and Harrison streets at 1 p.m.
■ American Legion Post 26 will sponsor a hip-hop/reggae show at 209 Monroe St. at 6 p.m. Tickets will be $7 at the door.
Sunday
■ The Elks Lodge, 555 Otto St., will hold a pancake breakfast fundraiser from 7 a.m. to 10 a.m. Tickets will be $5 at the door.
■ The Jim Caldwell Memorial Rhody Festival Golf Tournament will resume at 9 a.m. at the Port Townsend Golf Course.
■ Registration for the Rhody Run, a 12-kilometer run/walk that attracts about 2,000 people annually, will begin at 9 a.m. at Fort Worden State Park, with the run beginning at 11 a.m.
An awards ceremony for the winners will be at 1 p.m. at the park.
■ The Rhody Carnival at Memorial Field will open at noon.
Scholarship fundraiser
The final Rhody-related event will be next weekend.
The fundraiser for the Rhody Scholarship Fund, which is for festival royalty, will be from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. Saturday, May 28.
“Dude Looks Like a Lady,” a unique fundraiser that is in its second year, will be at the Elks Lodge, 555 Otto St., Port Townsend.
The event includes more than 20 local men who will dress as women and dance for tips, which will then be contributed to the Rhody Scholarship Fund.
Last year’s event raised about $2,000.
For more information about the “Dude Looks Like a Lady” fundraiser, phone Melanie Bozak at 360-395-4871.
For more information about the Rhody Festival, visit www.rhodyfestival.org.
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Jefferson County Reporter Charlie Bermant can be reached at 360-385-2335 or at charlie.bermant@peninsuladailynews.com.
