DANVILLE – Former Quaker Oats employee Nicole Randle has fond memories of her annual participation in the Labor Day Parade in Danville, where children along the route would loudly beg for granola bars to be thrown to them.

“They loved it,” Randle said.

This year, however, will be bittersweet for Randle.

She will still take part in the parade, but as a former Quaker employee – due to the plant closing in June.

Members of the Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers International Union Local 327 Quaker Oats will serve as general marshals for this year’s parade.

Parade Coordinator Connie Ostrander says, “Quaker Oats has been a cornerstone of our community. With the recent closure of our Quaker Oats factory, we want to honor our brothers and sisters of BCTGM 347. We thank them for all their years of dedication and for being a strong workforce in our community.”

Randle said she wasn’t sure how many of her former colleagues would join her in the parade.

Randle, who worked for Quaker Oats for 19 years, is currently going back to school, taking certified medical assistant courses through Vermilion County Works and the American Job Center, and working part-time at Heavenly Square Grocery.

She said she is “still unsure” about what she wants to do next. The fact that the Danville native has a child is an important factor in her decision.

“I’m just starting over and trying to decide at some point what I’m going to do permanently,” Randle said. “It’s a drastic change.”

The Vermilion County Federation of Labor AFL-CIO is once again sponsoring the annual Danville Labor Day Parade on behalf of the unions.

The parade begins at 9:30 a.m. on Monday at the corner of Williams and Vermilion Streets. The route heads south and ends at the corner of Main and Vermilion Streets.

Parade highlights include: the Illini Jeep Crew, youth organizations, beauty queens, several businesses, churches, youth groups, a return visit from Captain America, Krazy Karts, and the Danville Chapter of AMBUCS.

Volunteers who can help set up and line up participants can report to Rawhide Meat Co. on North Vermilion Street shortly before 8 a.m. to begin their assignments.

Ostrander said she looks forward to seeing everyone at the annual event.