It may have rained on our Fiesta Bowl parade but that didn’t stop the volunteers and staff of Donate Life Arizona from having a good time!

On Dec. 31, Donate Life Arizona participated for the sixth time in the annual Fiesta Bowl parade. 65 volunteers walked the event with posters recognizing themselves as either a recipient or donor family.

Thousands of people lined the streets of the three mile parade beginning at Central Ave and Bethany Home Road and ending just north of Indian School Road.

Volunteers handed out Donate Life bracelets. Dancers from Verrado High School waved to the cheering crowd. The inflatable Reggie the Donor Cactus balloon was a hit as the handlers spun him around to the music.

“I walk to show appreciation for the gift of life,” said Blake Loyland, marketing and events coordinator for Donate Life Arizona. Blake’s father received a heart transplant in February 2006, giving Blake one more year to spend with her father before he passed away in February 2007. This is her second time walking in the Fiesta Bowl. The first time she was a volunteer and had family fly out to participate with her.

The parade was broadcast exclusively by Channel 3.