A chilly autumn morning enveloped spectators who anxiously waited under clear blue skies for the 31st annual Georgia Marble Festival parade to begin on Saturday, October 1st. As the parade began at 10:00 a.m., the wind had picked up and whipped through the spectator-lined Main Street of Jasper. The parade’s theme this year, “Lost Our Marbles,” was carried out well by the participants who chose to us the theme.

Local politicians, organizations, businesses, citizens, sports teams and Marble Festival Pageant winners made up the participants of the half hour-long parade. The Grand Marshall was Stan Barnett, Pickens County Citizen of the Year 2011.

Candy and gum was tossed to the delighted children who lined the parade route. Spectators scrambling for an unobstructed view overflowed from the cordoned off sidewalks onto the streets. Who wouldn’t want a better view of the fascinating scenes of the 31st annual parade?