Starlight Parade fills streets of downtown Portland

Published 11:56 am Sunday, June 1, 2025

By Jim Redden

1/9
The Clown Prince Throne float entertains the crowd along Southwest Broadway Street during the Starlight Parade in downtown Portland. (Jaime Valdez/Portland Tribune)

Tens of thousands of people lined the streets of downtown Portland late Saturday, May 31, for the Starlight Parade, which is part of the ongoing annual Rose Festival.

This year’s Grand Marshal was Dillon T. Pickle, the mascot of the Portland Pickles baseball team, who rode in the back of a convertible and waved to the crowds along the route. The parade started with a run that featured many participants in costumes, illuminated floats, marching bands, clowns and more.

Security was tight along the route and many streets were closed off this year by specially designed anti-vehicle barricades. They replaced the dump trucks that has been used in the past, which failed to prevent the driver of a pickup truck from nearly running down some parade-goers in 2023.

The Rose Festival’s annual Grand Floral Parade is scheduled for Saturday, June 7, beginning at 10 a.m. It returns to downtown in 2025 after staying on the east side for the past three years. The parade will feature a float by Good in the Hood, the longtime annual multicultural North and Northeast Portland community festival, which is returning on June 28-29 after taking last year off.

You Might Like