By Nathaniel A. Lopez
Jerry and Sue Parra with their grandson Aaron.
The Grand Marshals for the 2024 Oracle Oaks Festival are Sue and Jerry Parra.
Jerry Parra was born in Tiger, Arizona in 1951, and has been in the area his entire life, while Sue has been in Oracle since 1970. The two have been married for 50 years.
For almost 40 years they have been running Sue & Jerry’s Trading Post, a staple of Oracle, and a safe haven for artistic creativity, second-hand treasures, and entrepreneurship. When asked what inspired Sue & Jerry’s, Sue Parra commented, “We had a yard sale, and we made like $400, and it was like ‘bingo’, and we realized how much we love junk, and the rest is history.”
Sue and Jerry also have hosted the Oracle’s Farmers Market since 2014, every Wednesday from April to October, and will be celebrating their tenth anniversary this year.
“It’s been free for the community to just come and sit back, listen to music, and eat. The vendors make money and people come from all over too, Mammoth, San Manuel, Tucson, Oro Valley, Marana,” said Jerry.
Sue and Jerry have been offered the role of Oaks Festival Grand Marshals in previous years, but never accepted it.
“I felt, ‘hey there’s other deserving people out there that’ve been here for a long time, let them have the first choice of being the Grand Marshals.’ It’s a privilege, it’s an honor,” Jerry humbly commented.
“It is an honor, and we were honored and we apologized for not being able to do it all those years, but this year we looked at each other and said, ‘we are getting a little older, let’s do this before it’s too late.’” Sue added with a laugh.
The two recounted the early years of the Oaks Festival and bringing their children to it.
“It was a big deal every year. I remember one year we got ducks. It was just like this carnival type thing, and that was really good for a few years,” recalled Sue. “A lot of things happen, and getting volunteers is hard, the poor community center. This board that’s there now has done a lot, and they’ve brought back that community center pride, and community pride. They love Oracle, all of them. I think this year is going to be wonderful.”
The Oracle Oaks Festival is one of the Oracle Community Centers biggest fundraisers of the year. Be sure to come out and see all the festivities that are planned and support all the vendors! Don’t forget to watch the Oaks parade at 9 a.m., where you can catch Grand Marshals Sue and Jerry, who will be riding in one of their own classic vehicles.