Photo by Deb Gau Above: All eyes were turned toward the end of Main Street in Lucan as the community’s annual St. Patrick’s Day parade started up Sunday afternoon. Bennett Krueger and Rose Kramer were both sporting festive green hats to watch the parade

LUCAN — You don’t have to be Irish to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day — in Lucan, the whole community gets involved in the party.

On Sunday afternoon, a crowd of people lined both sides of Main Street, ready to cheer for the 36th annual Lucan St. Patrick’s Day Parade. There were plenty of leprechaun hats and shamrock-green clothes in the crowd, while kids carried bags to catch candy tossed from the parade floats.

The parade is an event that draws both area community members and new visitors each year.

“This is our first year,” said Tiffany Guetter. Guetter and her family were checking out the kids’ games set up at the Lucan Community Center after the parade. It was a fun event, Guetter said. “And the weather was beautiful.”

A week of chilly temperatures in southwest Minnesota had let up just in time for Sunday’s parade. While there were still plenty of people in the crowd wearing coats and stocking caps in addition to Irish green, the day was sunny.

St. Patrick’s Day celebrations brought people out to support Lucan, in addition to having fun. The Lucan Lions hosted a pancake breakfast. Later in the day, adults could enjoy a beer at Knott’s Corner Bar and Grill, and take part in community raffle and auction fundraisers. Familes took part in the kids’ carnival organized by Milroy 4-H members.

Kids and families walked under a giant inflatable rainbow at the Community Center to go play games ranging from mini-golf to Plinko.

“We’ve done this a few years now,” said Rachel Coudron, a member of the Milroy Go-Getters 4-H club. “It’s been a lot of years that we’ve done the parade.”

Milroy 4-H members said in the past they had organized kids’ games more for the summer Pretzel Days celebration in Lucan. However, carnival organizers said it turned out to be easier to get the club together for St. Patrick’s Day instead. “It’s worked out well.”