Irish Wolfhounds and llamas were joined by mounted police led by Summit County Sheriff Kandy Fatheree – Akron Mayor Shammas Malik was also along for the festivities at the annual St. Patrick’s Day Parade on South Main Street downtown.

The annual event, held rain or shine, was presented by the Mark Heffernan / Margaret Judge Divisions of the Ancient Order of Hibernians in partnership with the city.

Dancers with Unique TntbombSquad.
Dancers with Unique TntbombSquad perform during the St. Patrick’s Day Parade in downtown Akron. Credit: (Doug Brown / Signal Akron)
Irish Wolfhounds.
Irish Wolfhounds with the Irish Wolfhounds of Northeast Ohio group march during the St. Patrick’s Day Parade in downtown Akron. Credit: (Doug Brown / Signal Akron)
The annual St. Patrick's Day Parade begins in downtown Akron.
The annual St. Patrick’s Day Parade began at noon in downtown Akron. Credit: (Doug Brown / Signal Akron)
The St. Vincent - St. Mary marching band.
The St. Vincent – St. Mary marching band during the St. Patrick’s Day celebration in downtown Akron. Credit: (Doug Brown / Signal Akron)
Chapparells Baton & Drum Corp. marches during the St. Patrick's Day Parade.
Chapparells Baton & Drum Corp. marches during the St. Patrick’s Day Parade and celebration in downtown Akron. Credit: (Doug Brown / Signal Akron)
The Ladies Ancient Order of Hibernians march.
The Ladies Ancient Order of Hibernians march during the St. Patrick’s Day celebration in downtown Akron. Credit: (Doug Brown / SIgnal Akron)
Akron Mayor Shammas Malik shakes the hand of an Ohio Hibernians member.
Akron Mayor Shammas Malik shakes the hand of an Ohio Hibernians member during the St. Patrick’s Day celebration in downtown Akron. Credit: (Doug Brown / Signal Akron)
A member of Akron Hurling.
A member of Akron Hurling demonstrates during the St. Patrick’s Day celebration in downtown Akron. Credit: (Doug Brown / Signal Akron)
Summit County Sheriff Kandy Fatheree waves to the crowd.
Summit County Sheriff Kandy Fatheree waves to the crowd during the St. Patrick’s Day celebration in downtown Akron. Credit: (Doug Brown / Signal Akron)
The St. Vincent – St. Mary football team and staff march during the St. Patrick’s Day celebration in downtown Akron. Credit: (Doug Brown / Signal Akron)
Kids with the MacConmara Academy of Irish Dance.
Kids with the MacConmara Academy of Irish Dance try to stay dry during the St. Patrick’s Day Parade celebration in downtown Akron Credit: (Doug Brown / Signal Akron)

Government Reporter (he/him)
Doug Brown covers all things connected to the government in the city. He strives to hold elected officials and other powerful figures accountable to the community through easily digestible stories about complex issues. Prior to joining Signal Akron, Doug was a communications staffer at the ACLU of Oregon, news reporter for the Portland Mercury, staff writer for Cleveland Scene, and writer for Deadspin.com, among other roles. He has a bachelor’s degree in political science from Hiram College and a master’s degree in journalism from Kent State University.

For routine messages, feel free to contact Doug Brown at doug@signalakron.org. If you have privacy concerns and/or want to share sensitive information, you can reach him on the end-to-end encrypted messaging app Signal (no connection to Signal Akron) under username @dbrown.2010 and encrypted email account db159@proton.me