Basset hounds will take the lead during the Doo Dah Parade celebration downtown and on the Boardwalk. (Photo courtesy of Ocean City)
Ocean City’s spring season will kick into high gear with two of its most popular events this weekend: the annual Doo Dah Parade and the first of two Great Egg Hunts on the Boardwalk. Both are scheduled for Saturday, April 12.
The Doo Dah Parade is Ocean City’s season-opening celebration of all things humorous. The procession features marching bands, floats and a brigade of hundreds of basset hounds. The parade begins at noon.
The route starts at Sixth Street and travels downtown Asbury Avenue to 12th Street, then turns to the Boardwalk at 12th Street and finishes on the Boardwalk at Sixth Street.
The First Ocean City Doo Dah Parade was held on April 19, 1986. It was based on the original Doo Dah Parade, a spoof of the Rose Bowl Parade, held in Pasadena, California.
Ocean City’s event is always scheduled close to Tax Day, and it serves as a way to blow off steam during income tax filing season. It’s also a great way to welcome a new season in Ocean City.
Former Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Tommy Greene will be the grand marshal of the parade.
Greene pitched for the Phillies from 1990 to 1995, and he posted a 16-4 record during the team’s memorable run to the World Series in 1993. He also played for the Atlanta Braves and Houston Astros during his career. He has served as a post-game analyst for Phillies broadcasts.
Greene will be available for free autographs and pictures at the Ocean City Music Pier for an hour after the parade.
Some highlights will include the Hobo Band, the Jersey String Band, the Woodland String Band, Crescent Shriner’s Mini Cars, the Fred Hall Orchestra and the Atlantic City Fire Department Sandpipers Band.
During the Great Egg Hunts, Boardwalk merchants will invite children into their stores to collect eggs filled with toys, treats and prizes. (Photo courtesy of Ocean City)The first of two Great Egg Hunts will be held on the Boardwalk on Saturday from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. Participating merchants will invite children up to age 7 to visit stores with their families to collect eggs filled with toys, treats and prizes.
The free event will run for two hours or while supplies last. Flyers will direct families to 50 participating stores to collect eggs trick-or-treat-style. Rain date is April 13. A second Great Egg Hunt is scheduled for 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. April 19 with a rain date of April 20. More information is available on Facebook (@ocnjboardwalk) or Instagram (@oc_njboardwalk).
The Easter Bunny will be in town to visit with children 9 a.m. to noon on April 12, 13 and 19 at Mark Soifer Park at the corner of Ninth Street and Asbury Avenue. Families will be able to take photos with the Easter Bunny in an Ocean City Beach Patrol lifeguard boat at the park. The event also gives families a chance to take advantage of all that Ocean City’s downtown shopping and dining district has to offer.
VOLUNTEER SOUGHT FOR BEACH SWEEPS ON APRIL 12
All organizations, individuals and families are encouraged to participate in the annual statewide Clean Ocean Action Beach Sweeps to help keep the beaches clean and safe and to protect the coastal environment.
Volunteers are encouraged to join in the semi-annual beach cleanup in Ocean City from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Saturday, April 12. Register at cleanoceanaction.org and pick up supplies at the Ocean City Music Pier (Boardwalk at Moorlyn Terrace) before heading out.
At the same time, a group of local residents is launching a pilot program called the Castaways Community Beach Bag. The group will sponsor a beach cleanup starting at 9 a.m. Saturday (April 12) at Surf Road Beach.
They will unveil Castaway Beach Boxes, where beachgoers and walkers can pick up bags to help collect any trash or plastics they may come across. The bags are designed to allow sand to sift through. They will be available this summer at Surf Road, 29th Street and 59th Street as part of the pilot program.
Sara Masciantonio and her daughter, Bella, of Egg Harbor Township, pick up trash from Ocean City's beach during the Clean Ocean Action annual beach sweep in 2024.
