Rockville Centre St. Patrick's Parade postponed amid COVID-19 outbreak

Ellen White

Due to concerns about the coronavirus, the annual Rockville Centre St. Patrick’s Parade, scheduled for Saturday, was postponed.

Although there were no reported coronavirus cases in Rockville Centre at press time, state, county and local officials have been warning against large gatherings to help prevent its spread. Gov. Andrew Cuomo banned gatherings of 50 or more people on Monday, after the decision to postpone the parade had been made.

At press time, Nassau County had 136 cases, and there were more than 1,300 statewide. Nassau’s first reported case was a part-time worker at Mercy Medical Center who lives in Uniondale.

The village and the St. Patrick’s Parade Committee announced the decision on March 12, citing the health and safety of the thousands expected to attend what would have been the 24th annual parade.

“They absolutely, 100 percent did the right thing,” said Ellen White, director of the community arts program the Backyard Players and Friends, who was to be this year’s grand marshal. “We have to do what’s right for the safety of the community.

“I know it’s a disappointment for the community, and I do feel badly,” White added. “But we’ve been able to come together many times before in times like these, and we will again.”

The event is known as “the parade that shares and cares,” and the parade board said it planned to choose a new date to honor this year’s three charities: the Rockville Centre Breast Cancer Coalition, the Army Ranger Lead the Way Fund and the Holy Family School for the Deaf.

“Recently, the Parade Board met to discuss the ever-changing situation that is currently taking place,” the board wrote in a statement, “and have prioritized the well-being of the valued members of the Rockville Centre Community and all those who travel from far and near to join us on this special day. We hope to be marching up Maple Avenue to celebrate our 2020 Grand Marshal, Ellen White, in the near future.”

The board is also rescheduling the annual Grand Marshal Dinner, planned for Friday, and a commemorative Mass originally scheduled for the morning of the parade.

White, a Rockville Centre resident for 27 years, had been “adding a lot of green” to her wardrobe, she said, and “marching up and down Maple Avenue” in preparation for the big event. Before the postponement was announced, she described it as the highlight of the year for the Backyard Players and Friends, which always marches as a group.

“This doesn’t take away from the amazing work [the parade committee] did all year long for the charities,” she told the Herald after hearing the news. “The parade is the icing on the cake, but the cake is still there.”

Backyard Players and Friends, which White helped found about five years ago, offers acting, singing and other classes for young adults with disabilities. She is also the director of Centre Stage, a theater program at South Side High School for students of all abilities.

White launched Backyard Players and Friends to keep adults of varying abilities engaged in the community after they leave high school. “We found that after participants age out of traditional school systems, there was a lack of social and community events and programs to attend,” she explained.

The organization has been a St. Patrick’s Parade fundraising recipient in the past. To give back, the Backyard Players and Friends held its own fundraisers for the parade this year.

“Ellen is an extraordinary lady who works her heart and soul for a part of our community that are sometimes marginalized or forgotten,” Village Trustee Nancy Howard said, “and she just has the best time, brings them forward, brings out their families, to have support with each other.”