Mountain Road removed from route to reduce traffic impact, new route includes Tick Neck Road, Crystal Palace Lane, Mansion House Crossing and Duvall Highway
The Pasadena Harvest For The Hungry Caring & Sharing Parade is back for 2025 – and this year, there’s a new parade route.
The 29th-annual parade will kick off from Tick Neck Park on Sunday, November 2 at 2:00pm, turning right onto Fort Smallwood Road momentarily before heading down Tick Neck Road. Floats will proceed down Tick Neck Road, turning right onto Crystal Palace Lane. The parade will make a right onto Mansion House Crossing, which becomes Notley Road. It will then turn right onto Duvall Highway, concluding at Northeast High School.
Mountain Road, which was previously included in the parade’s path, was removed from the route this year in an effort to reduce traffic impact. The new route’s distance – 2.3 miles – remains the same as in previous years, said Angela Balsamo, chair of this year’s parade.
For those wishing to set up an area to watch the parade, there are two prime gathering areas that offer plenty of parking and space to spread out. St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church, located on Tick Neck Road, offers ample parking and a prime viewing space. The other area open to spectators is Chesterfield Community Pool at 2940 Crystal Palace Drive, which offers parking and a playground area.
“We didn’t want to inconvenience traffic and hurt the businesses on Mountain Road by closing it down,” Balsamo explained. “We hope that this is an exciting event for Pasadena residents to have a parade come down their neighborhood streets.”
Another change to this year’s parade is that the Pasadena Business Association, which has been responsible for orchestrating the event every year since 1996, has partnered with The Rotary Club of Lake Shore & Severna Park as a way to combine efforts in collecting food donations and spreading awareness.
John Clark, a longtime Pasadena resident and beloved member of both the Pasadena Business Association and the Lake Shore Rotary, passed away in June of this year. “Before he passed, we had met up for lunch to talk about ways the Pasadena Business Association and the Lake Shore & Severna Park Rotary could work together. I think he would have loved to have seen this parade partnership take place,” said Balsamo.
The theme of the parade is to express the real spirit of the holidays, being thankful for what we have, and to share with the less fortunate in our community. Northeast High school will participate in this year’s parade to collect nonperishable food items along the route. All food collected with go to local food pantries such as Caring Cupboard, community churches, and Northeast High School’s food pantry. “All the food collected stays in the Pasadena community,” assured Balsamo.
Parade Awards will be given for the following categories:
- Best Entry Overall
- Best Business Display on Float
- Best Patriotic Entry
- Most Original & Judges Award
- Best Community Entry
- Best Youth Group Entry
- Best Musical or Performance Entry
For a complete photo gallery and list of this year’s winners, check back after the parade.
