Sea Isle City resident Tim Kelly, who often portrays St. Patrick, shows off his elaborate costume while marching in the 2025 parade.
There is one day every year in Sea Isle City that Mayor Leonard Desiderio loves to declare, “Everyone is Irish.”
That day, of course, is St. Patrick’s Day.
For the 34th year, the mayor and his family will sponsor the St. Patrick’s Day parade Saturday, March 14, starting at 3:30 p.m. at 83rd Street and Landis Avenue.
Featuring a sea of green, the colorful procession will roll down Landis Avenue to 63rd Street, ending at the Kix bar and nightclub owned by the Desiderio family.
Prior to the parade, there will be a Best Dressed contest at 2 p.m. at Kix for anyone who wants to show off their St. Paddy’s Day finery and costumes.
Desiderio and his family have sponsored the St. Patrick’s Day parade for its entire 34-year history. He and his late brother, Gerard, started Sea Isle’s St. Patrick’s Day parade and Columbus Day parade in 1992, setting the stage for both to become annual traditions.
However, the COVID-19 pandemic took a toll on the Columbus Day parade and it was canceled. Desiderio has said he hopes to revive the Columbus Day parade.
Sea Isle City Mayor Leonard Desiderio and his daughter, Carmela, wave to spectators as the St. Patrick's Day parade gets underway.Each year, Desiderio is joined in the St. Patrick’s Day parade by marchers dressed in green, costumed characters entertaining the crowds and string bands providing a musical backdrop.
“Everyone is Irish on this day,” Desiderio proclaimed during the 2025 parade. “Everyone is looking to have a good time, and that’s what this parade has done for 33 years.”
Tim Kelly, a Sea Isle resident, often portrays St. Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland, in the parade by dressing up in a shimmering green robe, ornate headdress and flowing white beard.
A procession of police cars, fire trucks and other emergency vehicles flashes their lights and blares their sirens and horns to crank up the excitement level.
Hundreds, if not thousands, of spectators line the sidewalks along Landis Avenue dressed in green clothing, hats, beads, shamrocks, comical shaggy wigs and waving Irish flags.
Children scurry about, scooping up the wrapped candy tossed their way by marchers in what is one of the parade’s favorite traditions.
The Durning String Band serenades the crowds lining the sidewalks during the 2025 parade.
