The 2nd Annual Sock Out Cancer parade is Sunday, August 22, 2021. Participants will register and stage at Tri-Cities Airport in Endicott starting at 9:00 a.m. The parade will depart at 10:00 a.m. and arrive at the SUNY Broome campus on Front Street around 11:00 a.m. The event will morph into the Blast From The Past car show that Connelly started more than 10 years ago that has raised tens of thousands of dollars for local charities.
In 2020 the longest parade ever staged in Broome County raised $4,000 for Sock Out Cancer, with the money shared between programs at Lourdes Hospital and United Health Services. In addition to the cash donations, parade participants donated an astounding 900 meals to the Community Hunger Outreach Warehouse (CHOW) to assist food-challenged families throughout the community. Sock Out Cancer is a 501c3 program founded and administered by Security Mutual Life Insurance Company.
“Everything is coming together,” said Sock Out Cancer parade organizer Bob Connelly, “and our goal is to double the donations of last year’s inaugural event.”
A $10 entry fee per vehicle, plus a non-perishable donation for CHOW, are all that is required to enter this event. Vehicles of every size, type, color, and make can participate. Each entry will receive a pair of Sock Out Cancer socks courtesy of Security Mutual Life Insurance Co.
“You’ll see hundreds of street rods, race cars, fire trucks, antique vehicles, and even a few grocery getters that want to help Sock Out Cancer,” added Connelly.
The Grand Marshall for the 2021 edition of the Sock Out Cancer parade will be esteemed scholar M. Stanley Whittingham, a Binghamton University Professor of Chemistry and Materials Science and co-recipient of the 2019 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his work in the development of lithium-ion battery technology.
