By So there were no floats or marching bands. But the cavalcade of horn beeping, music blaring motor vehicles decorated with balloons and streamers that passed by the Shoen residence as Brandon waved and shouted greetings to Malta Avenue Elementary School chums safely quarantined inside of the four-wheelers provided the gift of a lift to many villagers.
There wasn’t enough gift wrap in The Empire State to package the present Carey and Kirk Shoen gave to their three children – and the community – on eldest son Brandon’s 10th birthday in May 2020.
What began with a stringed cascade of multi-colored balloons forming a rainbow around the perimeter of the family’s Hyde Boulevard front yard on May 8 will surely go down in Saratoga County history as a celebration that captured the indomitable Spirit of Ballston Spa against the backdrop of a pandemic.
Indeed, with the benefit of hindsight (which, of course, is 20/20), Brandon and siblings Christopher, seven, and Julianna, four, will surely remember that while much in their daily lives changed seemingly overnight because of the coronavirus, the truly important things like the support of relatives and friends remained constant. And that trying some new things can be downright FUN-derful.
In fact, had their parents not had to join the WFH (Work from Home) ranks, simultaneously transforming part of the family’s home into a classroom after schools were closed in March to help prevent the spread of COVID-19, Brandon’s birthday would never have ended with a parade. That’s right. A parade!
Okay. So there were no floats or marching bands. But the cavalcade of horn beeping, music blaring motor vehicles decorated with balloons and streamers that passed by the Shoen residence as Brandon waved and shouted greetings to Malta Avenue Elementary School chums safely quarantined inside of the four-wheelers provided the gift of a lift to many villagers.
According to mother Carey, the idea for the birthday parade was one she borrowed from a friend of Brandon’s who had turned 10 about a month earlier. “His Mom had invited us to the ‘parade’ by her house,” notes Carey, adding that a subsequent GOOGLE search of “Kids’ Birthday Parades” yielded additional suggestions for celebrating SMILE-stones while keeping youngsters safe from the infectious disease that by May 20/20 had claimed nearly 100,000 American lives, almost 23,000 of them in NYS.
The kids also got to see one another sporting masks – something previously unheard of except at Halloween.
“We didn’t plan it that way, but when we later went for a hike in the Saratoga Spa State Park (near SPAC), the boys were all wearing bandana style masks – essentially circular piece of fabric that can easily be pulled up over one’s face whenever someone comes by. Our kids like them because they can pretend they are ninjas! The bandana facial coverings were a recommendation from my brother, Michael Gentile, who lives on Long Island and has been dealing with the seriousness of this situation longer than we have. He purchased them to put over his regular mask to ensure he is fully protected. The other two masks came from Kirk’s mom who lives in the North Country on the opposite side of NYS. A neighbor had made them and she purchased a bunch for all of us. I thought Julianna’s was cute because it is pink and really small – perfect for a little girl.“
Although Julianna misses her UPK (Universal Pre-Kindergarten) classmates and teachers at the Malta YMCA as much as Brandon and Christopher miss theirs at the Malta Avenue Elementary, they are enjoying the bonus time with their parents who would ordinarily be working in an office.
One can only imagine the stories the siblings will share with their own descendants about the days of auld lang syne when “The Spirit of Ballston Spa” was further fortified by a multi-generational parade passing by their rainbow-bordered front lawn on Brandon’s 10th birthday.
