Calvin Appleby has attended every Hastings Blossom Parade for 75 years. Photo / Rafaella Melo
It’s been 75 years since 14-year-old boy Calvin Appleby first stood on the streets of Hastings to watch the very first Blossom Parade.
He hasn’t missed a single one since.
On Saturday, as the event returns to mark its 75th year – complete with a giant birthday cake – the theme of celebrating Hastings’ past, present and future feels fitting.
Calvin will be back where he has always been: somewhere with a clear view.
He went to that first parade with his brother, Owen.
“It was a new thing in the city. Everyone went there,” Calvin told Hawke’s Bay Today.
“The first ones were mostly natural blossom that was used on various little trucks and things like that, bales of hay, floats were small ... and there were a lot of horses.”
By the late 50s, Calvin said crepe-paper blooms and a Queen Carnival had arrived.
“They had these lovely ladies, of course. I remember the ladies,” he grinned.
The parade became his own tradition. Calvin planned his Saturdays around it, even during workdays.
“I worked at the freezing works on Saturday mornings, but on Blossom Parade I would start at 6 in the morning and finish at 10, so that gave me time to get home, put on some good clothes and go to the parade,” he said.
In 1988, Calvin, who was a swimmer in his early days, flew back from a swimming competition in Brisbane, Australia, checked the time, and headed straight from the airport to the parade so he wouldn’t miss it.
He has seen all the changes over the decades.
“They used to have trains coming from Gisborne and from Wellington ... it started great, sort of accelerated, got better and better and better,” he said.
“But then, there was a quiet year in 2000 or something like that. There was only one band, and it was a sort of a silent parade ... I criticised, I wrote a letter to the paper, and then they’ve got them back.”
These days, Calvin enjoys the colour, the pipe bands, and the community groups.
At nearly 89, he plans to keep going to the event.
“People put in a lot of effort. They’ve gone to all that trouble, dressed up and all that. It’s over to me to make an effort to go there and watch, be part of a crowd,” he said.
“As long as I’m alive and I can go, I’ll go.”
Longtime parade director Lyn Mackie told Hawke’s Bay Today the Blossom Parade had adapted to society’s changes over its remarkable run.
“Everybody talks about how the parades used to be, but the community was very different,” she said.
“Back in the days ... businesses would spend weeks building big floats ... they would have their workers making blossoms during work time ... and it was a big competition.
“Nowadays, people don’t have the time or the money to do that, so the focus of the parade has changed from businesses to community.
“There are more ethnicities involved. It’s more of a carnival with groups rather than the big floats. That’s a true reflection of our community these days.”
The event has been part of Mackie’s life for more than a quarter of a century. Originally from Wellington, she moved to Hawke’s Bay about 40 years ago and has now overseen the parade for 26 years through Arts Inc Heretaunga.
With 2025 marking 75 years since the first parade, Mackie says that’s a sign of “longevity”.
“Every year we have at least 1200 people in the parade and 20,000 to 25,000 people watching the parade. It is a free community event. It’s iconic in Hastings, and it has maintained its popularity throughout the years.”
She said this year’s participation is similar to recent editions, with over 60 entries and they are still welcoming volunteers to help on the day.
Among the highlights are the giant birthday cake, cultural groups, vintage fire engines, and belly dancers.
Other free activities range from a family fun zone and face painting to hip hop and kapa haka performances, live music, comedic clowning, live music and a circus act.
The festival will be held on September 20, starting at 10am with free carnival rides and activities before the parade begins at 1pm.
With the parade coming up on Saturday, many groups are busy preparing their floats, including Hastings District Council, which will have two entries this year – the large buzzy bee, and a cake to mark the parade’s diamond anniversary.
Throughout the history of the parade, cakes have featured at times, ranging from the Griffiths Footwear float in 1956 to the Hawke’s Bay Memorial Hospital birthday cake float in 1970.
Hastings mayor Sandra Hazlehurst said since its inception in 1950, the Hastings Blossom Festival and Parade had heralded the arrival of spring, the burgeoning fruit-growing season, and the special creative spirit of Hastings’ people.
“Seventy-five years on this event still holds a special place in our community’s heart,” she said.
The cake float will lead this year’s parade.