The 68th annual Andreas Halloween Parade kicked off the Halloween parade season Wednesday night.

A great crowd of spectators turned out to watch the Tamaqua Area High School marching band, various other marching groups, floats, fire apparatus with wailing sirens and an assortment of creative themes.

Members of the Tamaqua band wore costumes as they marched.

“I thought it was a great little parade,” said Rebecca Neumoyer, who has been the chairwoman of the Andreas Halloween Parade for the past five years. “We had some really, really great floats this year.”

The Andreas Sporting Club float simulated a wooded area with cutouts of bears, deer, pheasants and other wildlife.

Judges gave it a first-place prize in the float division.

The first-place marching unit was Lehighton Ambassador Troop 3583 which depicted the girls as super heroes.

The parade is sponsored by the West Penn Lions and Lioness Club and the Andreas Sporting Club.

The grand marshals for the parade were Lester and Jean Kistler, owners of Kistler Transportation which provides bus transport for various area school districts.

They rode in a convertible driven by Jim Aiken.

West Penn Fire Company No. 1, Mahoning Valley Fire Company and New Ringgold Fire Company brought engines to the parade. Other emergency service providers that had equipment in the march were Penn Mahoning Ambulance, Mahoning Valley Ambulance and Tamaqua Fire Police.

The parade was led by West Penn Township Chief of Police Brian Johnson and members of VFW Post 5069 of Andreas riding on a float.

Neumoyer said, “It was fun to see everybody. This year we had Santa Claus.”

For children, besides the costumed marchers, one of the fun aspects of the parade is getting candy. Many of the paraders toss candy to the youngsters, who come equipped with bags and other containers to handle the bounty.

Judges for the parade were Stacey Lechleitner, Barbara Knappenberger and Larry Stival, with Bob Neumoyer as the announcer.

Prize winners were:

Floats: first, Andreas Sporting Club, outdoor theme; second, Lorah Property Repair, The Beverly Hillbillies; third, West Penn Girls Softball Teams, spooky characters; and honorable mention, West Penn Scout Pack 756 with a race car.

Marchers: first. Lehighton Ambassador Troop 3583, superheroes; second, Lehighton Brownie Troop 3562, with Girl Scouts Add Spice to Your Life; third, Lehighton Girl Scout Troop 329, camping Halloween bash; and honorable mention, Lehighton Junior Girl Scout Troop 33, The Fruit of Your Hard Work is the Sweetest.