Monday was quite a day for a parade in Newtown. Thousands of residents and visitors celebrated Labor Day with a march down Main Street

“This is really how we all get together as a community,” said Newtown native Michael Ronan.

The Newtown Labor Day parade has been around since 1962. Some elements would have fit right in back then, while others reflect the town today.

“Really, you’re looking at a tapestry of the town walking by,” Ronan said.

That included first responders and military, state champion baseball players, horses, helicopters, Miss Connecticut, karate kids, political leaders and the grand marshal – St. Rose of Lima pastor, Monsignor Robert Weiss.

Parades on Labor Day aren’t as common as on Memorial or Independence Day, but it’s a source of pride in Newtown, fitting its slogan, “deeply rooted in the community.”

“I love what it symbolizes,” Gov. Ned Lamont said. “I love that Newtown turns out, and people from all over the region, they remember what Labor Day is all about: the guys that do the work every day. Sometimes they couldn’t Zoom, sometimes they couldn’t telecommute, but they got the job done.”

This was the parade’s second year back after canceling for two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The parade was welcomed back with plenty of red, white and blue in the crowd.

“This is home, this is a safe place, this is a great place to be,” Ronan said. “This is a microcosm of the America we know.”