On the evening of December 5, crowds of people filled with holiday cheer lined the streets of Orange Avenue to celebrate as a community during Coronado’s annual Christmas parade and tree lighting. The parade started at six pm and ended at around seven. The march began on Orange Avenue and looped at RH Dana and Adella. Many students had the opportunity to be a part of the parade and, for the first time ever, CoSA’s Musical Theater and Drama conservatory participated in it.

Among those who helped bring the parade to life was Dawn Bright, the costume designer for MTD’s recent productions such as Alice by Heart, Cabaret, and The Addams Family, who took part in costuming CoSA for the event. “We’re pulling a bunch of costumes we had, and then I’m turning them even more Christmas-y,” Bright said. “I’m trying to pull the biggest costumes that we have that are just show stoppers.” As well as costuming, she also walked the parade and had safety pins ready to make sure nothing fell off while walking down Orange.

Though this is the first time MTD has participated in the parade, Bright is no stranger to community events. “I have done a lot of parades over the years and participated in them and helped out with them,” Bright said. “I’m like experienced in [something] called wrangling – basically giving water and helping people.”

Students in our school’s NJROTC program also took part in walking in the parade, holding flags and marching in uniform. Senior Myriam Armetta was a part of the color guard and carried the Navy flag. While she has had experiences in color guard from the past, performing while marching down the street at the same time came with its own challenges. “At first, it was really difficult to navigate holding the flag and also making sure to march in a straight line and to have to kind of just trust my gut on where I’m going. Depending on the wind, the flag was either in my face or my friends’ faces,” Armetta said. However, after a few minutes of walking she got the hang of it and was able to enjoy what made being in the parade special for her. “When I was walking by some people called out my name […] it’s super sweet to get to have people see what you can do. So I thought that was super fun.”

Another Senior marching for the NJROTC program was Anika Talavera, commanding the color guard and carrying an American flag. With experience from the past, it was no struggle for Talavera. “I did the color guard because I’ve been doing them for years and I have a lot of experience,” Talavera said. “I was also in last year’s parade and [the Homecoming] parade.” While marching directly behind the band made it difficult to hear, the team persisted and worked together smoothly. “Somehow we always get set behind the band and so I can barely hear myself saying the commands, but the people in my detail were great,” Talavera said.

For her, the most memorable part of the parade was before it began, witnessing everyone’s joy and holiday spirit. “My favorite part of being in the parade is at the beginning when everyone’s lining up and everyone’s just so happy,” Talavera said. “It’s a Friday and we’re all coming out and showing up for our community. You see old friends and family, people from school and the community and so it’s a really special tradition.”

The parade concluded with the annual tree-lighting ceremony, where Santa himself came to illuminate the massive 120-foot tall tree in Rotary Park, marking the night as one to remember and setting our expectations high for the many more Coronado Christmas parades to come.

VOL. 13, NO. 8 – Dec. 17, 2025