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continues on C6 GENERAL DENTISTRY foradults and children DENTURES PARTIALS freedenture consultation 831.476.6900 ASpecial ankYouForVotingForUs! Karen Coslett, D.D.S. 2901ParkAve.,Soquel,CA95073 SantaCruzFamilyDentistry.com 2016 T heannual Aptos Fourth of July parade started in true Santa Cruz County fashion: As a form of protest. In the 1960s, a woman named Lucile Aldridge organized a group of women to protest the coming of a cement plant. Labeled the Tuesday Evening Women's Society, the group launched the parade to bring atten- tion to the plans for the plant. The group stopped the construction of the plant but continued the parade as a tradition. In its 56 years of his- tory, the parade blos- somed from a group of women walking down the streets in evening gowns with parasols to something much more wholesome and some- what bizarre. The Aptos Chamber of Commerce organizes the event each year and its co-executive director Karen Hibble said the parade usually features dogs and parrots, with the occasional pig and even a donkey. She lists the animals with a laugh since it's rare for them to turn down parade applicants. A slice of Ameri- cana, the parades typically feature classic cars cruising down the block, trucks with boy scouts in tow, costumed locals and so many things that have come and gone over the years. "Anybody can get in," she said. "You can get in on a pair of stilts or on a wagon. It's not like the Rose Bowl or any- thing like that where you have to spend thou- sands of hours building a float." In an era where the internet is setting the bar for the wow fac- tor, the parade is a brief respite with its hometown vibe and shoestring budget. The night before the parade elicits residents to set up lawn chairs along the route, which spans less than a mile. Touted as the world's shortest parade, the event made it into the Guinness World Records book for that title. Fame has done little to change the parade from its community roots. Tradition is a world that gets used a Shortest paradeis thepride ofAptos Spectators cheer for their favorite floats on Soquel Drive in Aptos on Saturday morning during the annual World's Shortest Parade. (Kevin Johnson -- Santa Cruz Sentinel) By Calvin Men FRIDAY, JUNE 9, 2017 SANTACRUZSENTINEL.COM | COMMUNITY | 3 C