“We have one corporate sponsor at this point, who is assisting in our effort and our banner is being donated,” Winanne Grant, an alumna who lives in the Barrie area, told the Review.

Each participant will pay a $30 registration fee to raise money for the cause. “We are hoping that this is our first march of many years to come,” Grant said. “We are hoping that the numbers will grow each year. We are joking that years from now, we may be marching with canes and wheelchairs…”

The idea to march in the parade was spawned last year when a small group of the class of 1980 gathered at Lori Gleed’s home on Chudleigh Street in Waterdown to watch the nighttime procession.

“We all huddled in my garage, trying to catch up with each other’s lives before the big event,” Gleed recalled. “Whether it was the magic of the parade, the nostalgia of being home and together again, or perhaps a little too much Christmas cheer is hard to say, but somewhere along the way, what started as a chilly chuckle and a fun night out with old school chums turned into a march for a cause, and the momentum is gaining,” she explained.

Gleed, now an Orkney resident, credits Grant for coming up with the idea march and shaping it so that it became a fundraiser. Now the Chief Administrative Officer for the Township of Springwater, Grant hasn’t resided in her native Waterdown for several years but remains tied to the community through old friends and schoolmates. Her family is well-known in the area as her dad, (Col.) Douglas Fearman was a former councillor and respected community leader in Waterdown in the 1960s and 1970s.

Deciding to use the march to support the fight against breast cancer was a ‘no-brainer.’ “We probably chose it because it’s a great cause. We’ve all been touched by it,” said Waterdown resident, Laura Batey, also a 1980 WDHS grad, adding that a good friend, and a WDHS alumna, is currently recovering from the disease.

Joining Gleed and Grant at the Chudleigh Street reunion last November were “the original merrymakers,” Pam (Porter) MacIntyre, Elda (DeCarlo) Krick, Delia (Eastwood) Danto nys, Deb Wild and Kathi Black.

Batey quickly joined the ranks along with other grads, including Sue (Boville) Emard, Debbie Alderson, Janice Watson and Cheryl Olsen-Waller.

“We’re asking alumni and students from any year to put on the pink, grab your friends, your mothers, sisters and daughters for a Waterdown Lady Warrior Christmas reunion and a great cause,” Gleed said, noting that the alumni group is growing daily. ‘Auxiliary’ participants are also welcome to join in the fun.

To register, simply send an e-mail to pinkwarriorsonparade@yahoo.ca .