St. Patrick’s Parade and Festival bring a bit o’ Ireland to Lexington

Lexington’s St. Patrick’s Parade and its accompanying festival of music and dance painted downtown green on Saturday.

Cheryl Irwin and Tim Francis rode the parade route on their rolling couch and attached coffee table, along with “new Leprechauns” Eric and Andrea Rishel.

“We love it,” said Irwin, whose eyeshadow matched her green outfit.

“We call it couch therapy,” Francis added. “Nobody can be in a bad mood” when they see a couch rolling down the street.

The parade was sparsely attended, likely because of the low temperatures and its shared start time with the University of Kentucky-Alabama tipoff in the SEC Tournament.

“I think the weather got it,” said Damien Southard, a vendor who was making a quick exit during the parade with a cartload of green merchandise.

“We’re going to Louisville to see if we can catch that one,” he said.

The parade is sponsored by the Bluegrass Irish Society and produced by Lexington Parks and Recreation.

St. Patrick’s Day, which commemorates the date of death for the man credited with bringing Christianity to Ireland, is officially observed March 17.

This story was originally published March 11, 2017 at 4:20 PM with the headline "St. Patrick’s Parade and Festival bring a bit o’ Ireland to Lexington."