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32nd Annual Boat-a-Long

By Staff | Dec 15, 2008

Edwina Hahn passed away in May of this year, but her legacy lives on. The city of Cape Coral Holiday Boat-a-Long, entering its 32nd year, was Hahn’s baby. She originated the idea, nurtured it, made sure it had someone to watch over it as the years passed and she could no longer oversee its day-to-day operations.

Dave Drake was charged by Hahn to take the reigns of the parade roughly six years ago. The number of boats was slowly dwindling, and Hahn and other parade enthusiasts worried the event would not live on as the originators died out.

“The original boaters were getting old and the parade was going down hill,” Drake said. “But we’ve got the momentum now.”

Drake is expecting 150 – 200 boats to traverse the waters of Bimini Basin and Four Freedoms Park this year.

Normally decking out his father’s boat The Tinker Toy, this year Drake will be decorating Thor’s Hammer, piloted by Capt. Tom Buckard.

Drake’s decorations are at the heart of the parade’s luminescent decadence; gingerbread people, 6-foot candy canes and wreaths, a live Santa Claus wearing a suit sewn with 280 chasing lights – it’s all part of what Hahn loved about the holidays and the parade.

“We’ve never taken it away from her,” Drake said of Hahn, whom he spoke of with great fondness. “Its still her parade.”

Dubbed the “Queen of Lights,” Hahn’s ties to the Cape are much older than the parade.

Her mother and father were some of the original buyers during the golden age of the Rosen Brothers.

Hahn’s daughter, Edwina “Teddy” Reid, can remember flying over the Cape in the Rosens’ twin propeller engine plane, surveying a blank and desolate slip of land along the banks of the Caloosahatchee River.

Reid claimed her father was a “very conservative fellow,” but decided to go ahead and purchase two lots. The year was 1957, though the Hahns didn’t become full-time residents until 1974, after their home was built. It wasn’t long after that the first parade took place.

“She really wanted it to take off, it was her baby,” Reid said. “Christmas was her favorite time of the year. She was a Christmas fanatic.”

Full-time residents since 1993, Reid and her husband Bob made it a point to head for Cape Coral every holiday season to ride on her mother’s boat The Astrid, act as grand marshall, or “lead boat” for parade every year.

The Reids made 28 consecutive boat parades while still living in Delaware, and then, continued the traditions as residents.

Sadly, as Hahn’s health began to decline, the Reids made it a point to slowly and steadily reduce her role in the parade as the years went on.

“She was having some health problem so we had to put our foot down. Her blood pressure was sky high,” Reid said, sadly. “She loved making a show, she loved being a queen.”

This year’s parade will be dedicated to Hahn, cementing her place in the city’s short but elaborate and rich history.

The parade will also give those without a boat the chance to ride in the parade, according to Dave Drake.

The Banana Bay Tour Company will be taking reservations for their five boats that will be featured in the parade.

“So many people want to be in the parade but don’t have a boat, or they don’t want to use their own boats,” Drake said. “But once they ride in the parade and feel the excitement they’re going to want to be in it next year with their own boat. Once you’re in the boat parade, you’re hooked.”

For those on land, Four Freedoms Park will be filling up early. The fun kicks off at 4 p.m., with live entertainment by the Mario Infanti Band performing “upbeat” versions of many favorite Christmas songs, as well as popular and contemporary standards from 5:30-7:30 p.m.

Santa arrives at 6:20 p.m., and food and beverages will also be available.

Whether on land or sea, the parade’s focus is on the community. There are holiday boat parades all over Southwest Florida, if not the state.

But, for Drake, the Cape’s boat parade holds a special distinction, one that calls to the past as much as it does the future, honoring Edwina while thrilling an entirely new generation.

“This is a Cape parade,” Drake said. “It’s for our people, in our canals.”

The parade kicks off promptly at 7 p.m. with fireworks and sirens. There are a host of rules for those who want their boat in the parade. A sampling of the rules follows. For a full list, contact Drake.

n 6 p.m.- Boats arrive and anchor in the middle of Bimini Basin. Boats should be at least 18 feet in length, 4 1/2-foot maximum draw, and able to clear a 55- foot electrical cable.

n All moving boats circle Bimini Basin counterclockwise only, staying 50-feet away from the shallow waters of Four Freedoms Park and adjacent lot.

n No advertising on boats and don’t shine spotlights on people on land and sea.

n Marine Patrol warns: Don’t overload your boat and don’t “Drink and Drive.”

n U.S. Coast Guard law allows this “Parade of Lights.” We have a permit to do this. The decoration lights are to be used only in Bimini Basin and when we are parading with the Boat-A-Long. They must be turned off, as you leave the parade, or anchor along the route.

n If it is imperative that you leave the parade while it is ongoing, announce your exit over the radio and turn off all lights except legal night navigational lighting.

If you have any questions, call Drake at 772-9578, or e-mail CCboatparade@aol.com.

For those interested in reserving a spot on a Banana Bay Tour Company boat, call 728-8687.