Come Saturday downtown Scranton will be sea of green as the 49th annual Saint Patrick's Day Parade kicks off.
It is the largest celebration in the Electric City and on the eve of the celebration, the party was already well underway.
As a band pumped Irish tunes at the Banshee in Scranton, people who packed into the Penn Avenue pub Friday night were gearing up for parade day.
With the Guinness flowing, so was the party vibe, as shouts of "Erin Go Braugh" rang through the air.
Friday night is the unofficial kick-off to Scranton's Saint Patrick's Day Parade celebration and many come from out of town just for the event.
Every year, a group of fire fighters come from a Philadelphia suburb to march in the parade.
"We're very excited, we come here every year from Chester, it gets better every year," said Stacy Landrum, with the Chester Fire Department. "We support our union brothers. They're union brothers, we're union brothers and we stand together."
Bob Roche of Dunmore is this year's parade commander and will march along side the grand marshal. "I've been excited for two weeks now. I was surprised they picked me but I'm real proud of it," said Roche.
Parade commander seems like a role made for Roche, especially with a wife born in Ireland.
"This girl here is from County Kerry Ireland. We've been married 65 years now," said Roche.
Employees at the Banshee said parade weekend is the busiest of the year. "It's huge, every year it gets bigger, every year it gets louder and crazier, many of us will be here until the wee hours of the morning setting up for a 9 a.m. open," said bartender Sean Wolfe.
So before the marching begins, workers there said why not grab a pint and say "Slainte!"
It is the largest celebration in the Electric City and on the eve of the celebration, the party was already well underway.
As a band pumped Irish tunes at the Banshee in Scranton, people who packed into the Penn Avenue pub Friday night were gearing up for parade day.
With the Guinness flowing, so was the party vibe, as shouts of "Erin Go Braugh" rang through the air.
Friday night is the unofficial kick-off to Scranton's Saint Patrick's Day Parade celebration and many come from out of town just for the event.
Every year, a group of fire fighters come from a Philadelphia suburb to march in the parade.
"We're very excited, we come here every year from Chester, it gets better every year," said Stacy Landrum, with the Chester Fire Department. "We support our union brothers. They're union brothers, we're union brothers and we stand together."
Bob Roche of Dunmore is this year's parade commander and will march along side the grand marshal. "I've been excited for two weeks now. I was surprised they picked me but I'm real proud of it," said Roche.
Parade commander seems like a role made for Roche, especially with a wife born in Ireland.
"This girl here is from County Kerry Ireland. We've been married 65 years now," said Roche.
Employees at the Banshee said parade weekend is the busiest of the year. "It's huge, every year it gets bigger, every year it gets louder and crazier, many of us will be here until the wee hours of the morning setting up for a 9 a.m. open," said bartender Sean Wolfe.
So before the marching begins, workers there said why not grab a pint and say "Slainte!"
