Participants in this year’s Camp Oo-U-La will be the stars of a parade through downtown Winder on Wednesday, June 9.
The campers, escorted by fire trucks and police cars, will travel though town in limousines loaned to the camp by the Georgia Limousine Association.
“Last year there were a lot of citizens that flocked to the streets cheering the campers on as they passed,” said Barrow County Emergency Services public information officer Lt. Scott Dakin. “The more people that were watching the more the campers waved and the more their faces lit up. Seeing the smile on their faces was an incredible sight for many of us.”
The parade will begin at 10:15 a.m. at Camp Will-a-Way inside Fort Yargo. The parade will travel north on Hwy. 81 before turning left onto May Street. From there, the parade will travel to Horton Street and then turn left onto Athens. At McNeal Road, the parade will turn right and then right again onto Candler Street. At Marion Street, the parade will turn left and continue to North Fifth Avenue before turning left again. The parade will make a right turn onto Langford Street and will continue straight until reaching Hwy. 53. At Hwy. 53, the parade will turn right for the return trip to Ft. Yargo.
“The parade is an incredible event for the campers that attend Camp Oo-U-La, which is Georgia’s only camp for children that have survived a burn injury,” Dakin said. “The children have so much fun riding in the limousines and waving as they pass citizens that come to cheer them on.”
Dakin said the parade gives the children a chance to enjoy being a kid, not just a burn survivor.
“We are asking every citizen that can, to come out and watch the campers as they travel the parade route,” said Dakin. “We are also asking all the businesses along the parade route to take a few minutes and step out and cheer them on. Let’s show these campers just how thrilled we are to have them here in Barrow County. The more of us out there cheering them on, the bigger their smiles will be.”
