If you live in St. Joseph, you don’t need a groundhog to tell you when spring will be here. That’s because on the first weekend in May, spring comes marching down Frederick Avenue with bands playing and beauty queens waving in the form of the Apple Blossom parade. It’s been an annual tradition in St. Joseph since 1924. And although there have been short periods when the parade didn’t happen, such as during World War II, for the most part, the parade has continued like clockwork.

Apple Blossom president Ken Rosenauer and executive director Michelle Wolfe, can’t imagine it any other way. For the past 11 years, the two have been the force driving the parade, along with Becky Boerkircher with the Downtown Association and Jerry Ann Sporhase, who has been in charge of the Apple Blossom pageant for even longer.

“When you get involved with a tradition as long lived as the Apple Blossom and do it long enough, you become part of a tradition,� Mr. Rosenauer says.

The group usually begins work in early November, deciding on the theme and picking the grand marshals. They work with a tight budget, totally funded by parade entry fees. The week of the parade is particularly crazy, getting all the entries organized and accounted for. And by the time the parade is all lined up ready to go, they are exhausted, wondering why they keep doing this.

“That’s on the day of the parade as I’m getting up at 5 in the morning to be at breakfast at 6,� Ms. Wolfe says. “But once the parade starts going, I realize I can’t give this up.�

So what is it that drives someone to volunteer their time like this, year after year?

For Mr. Rosenauer, it’s the honor of carrying on the tradition set by his brother, Ron, who was in charge of the Apple Blossom parade for 20 years until he died in 2000.

But the main reason, they agree, is the people.

“A lot of years we didn’t ride in the parade. But for the last few years we have. It’s made all the difference,� Mr. Rosenauer says.

“It’s the reward. It’s the filling in the Oreo cookie. You can’t buy all those smiling faces.�

This year’s pageant was held last night, and the parade is May 1. For more information on this year’s Apple Blossom festivities, visit appleblossomparade.com.

Lifestyles reporter Sylvia Anderson may be reached at sylviaanderson@npgco.com.