With the continued surge of COVID positive cases in our area and the country, the Wagner Parade of Lights committee has decided to proceed with the parade. The Parade is scheduled for Friday, December 18th at 5:30p.m. with parade participants lining up at 5 p.m. The Yankton City Commission approved the plans to proceed with their Festival of Lights, according to the Yankton Press and Dakota, so Wagner felt comfortable with doing the same. Committee member Ruth Bouza said at their planning meeting November 18th, “We need something positive to happen in this community during such a difficult time. We need some hope.” Parade committee members unanimously agreed to proceed with the parade and hope it will provide the spirit of community we all need. Brenda Sangster commented, “We need to encourage common sense by social distancing and to wear a mask when attending the parade, or spectators can watch from their vehicle like they have in past years.” Dana Spreckles updated the parade flier to include the statement: “We encourage mask wearing and safe social distancing if watching outside of a vehicle.” The committee also hopes that the downtown businesses will support this event by providing treats to attendees. Sip Homestead Farms will be providing their gingerbread cookies. Paul Schoenfelder commented, “We want to continue the tradition, but will be individually wrapping and handing them out with gloves to be safe. We encourage everyone to be safe when interacting with others outside their household.” Other businesses can follow suit and continue the festivities in a safe and COVID conscious way. The parade provides a venue for the businesses to give back to the community. The parade will be live streamed by Access Granted, find it on Facebook 2020 Wagner Parade of Lights.