KIDS & FAMILIES

The 8th Annual Cape Cod St. Patrick’s Parade takes place on Saturday, March 9 in Dennis/Yarmouth. The parade steps off at 11 AM in West Dennis (intersection of Route 28 and School Street) and ends in Yarmouth (Route 28 and Forest Road). The St. Pat’s Parade has become one of the most anticipated offseason occasions on the Cape, drawing thousands of spectators from all over the country annually. The event features over a dozen marching bands from all over New England, floats, antique cars, special guests and other family friendly entertainment. Bruins legend Derek “Turk” Sanderson will serve as Grand Marshal of the parade. Sanderson is well known as one of the Bruin’s most accomplished and eccentric players, and a crucial player on the Boston Bruins Stanley Cup Champion teams of 1970 and 1972. His moment of hockey immortality came when he provided the perfect pass to Bobby Orr, enabling Bobby to score the overtime 1970 Stanley Cup winning goal. Sanderson subsequently grew in national acclaim. He was featured in national magazines, called “hockey’s Joe Namath”, was on Johnny Carson and other TV shows, had roles in two movies, wrote two autobiographies, and was a fashion model and at one time a TV show host. He partnered with Namath in a Boston bar, Bachelors III, increasing his fame and desirability. In 1972, he left the Bruins and the NHL to sign a multi-million dollar contract with the Philadelphia Blazers of the newly formed World Hockey Association, becoming the world’s highest paid athlete. This moment of great triumph became the moment of his precipitous fall. Everything about his life collapsed at once, he became reviled in Philadelphia as an overpaid under-performer. With unlimited money, he had no check on his bad habits and drugs and alcohol suddenly ruled his life. He was traded from team to team over the next five years until he was finally banished from hockey due to his addiction. Within a short time, Sanderson was broke, his millions gone. He was homeless in NYC for a period, sleeping under bridges and in Central Park. After almost three years of destitution and addiction, he found his way to Chicago to seek help from Bobby Orr. Orr Helped helped him get into rehab and after multiple stints, Sanderson became sober in 1980. Sanderson has become that rare individual. Not only has he remained sober, but he has given back on a grand scale. Derek has told his story and spoken of the dangers of drugs and alcohol to an estimated 750,000 young people and adults over thirty years. A compelling speaker, he holds nothing back and captivates his audiences with frightening, frank stories of the grip of addition and the difficulty of recovery. He became the TV color analyst for the Boston Bruins from 1986-1996, broadcasting almost 100 games per year. New England sports fans loved his sharp analysis of the game and his willingness to call them as he saw them. To bring his life full circle as Managing Director of The Sports Group at Baystate Wealth Management in Boston, he counsels young athletes about money management matters and assists them in avoiding the disastrous financial mistakes he himself made. Sanderson’s life story will be the basis of a new movie called “Turk”, which will be produced by Ed Burns. The Grand Marshal’s Dinner/Dance will be held the night prior at the Irish Village in Yarmouth. For more information on the parade or the Grand Marshal’s Dinner/Dance, visit www.capecodstpatsparade.com or www.facebook.com/capestpatsparade.