From the editors: We know that, this morning, many of our readers are preparing for a different kind of parade and protest — No Kings 3, which will be happening in downtown Sebastopol (10 am to noon) and in towns throughout west county. This time around we have reporters in several of those towns—Dewey Watson in Graton (noon to 1 pm), Su McMurtry in Occidental (begins at noon), Darcy Reinier in Guerneville (noon to 2 pm), and Vesta Copestakes in Forestville (begins at 10 am). Laura Hagar Rush and Lawson Gaylord will be covering Sebastopol. We will be publishing photos from all of these events either this afternoon or in tomorrow’s RoundUp.
In the meantime, as a part of our new Saturday West County Towns column, here is our first Occidental column from former Gazette columnist Darcy Reinier about a can’t-miss event in Occidental next weekend.
By Darcy Reinier
Here is the big news about what’s happening in Occidental in April. The Occidental Fool’s Parade and Party will be next Saturday, April 4, 2026. It is organized by the Occidental Center for the Arts (OCA) and sponsored by the Occidental Community Council and the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors.
Fools of all ages, dressed in their most outlandish outfits, will frolic through downtown Occidental, led by the Hubbub Club marching band. Tina Marchetti, the Executive Director of OCA, says “Everyone is welcome to join the fun in Occidental as we celebrate laughter, creativity, and fun!”
To participate in the parade, meet up at the Occidental Community Center at 12:30 pm. The parade starts at 1 pm and winds from the Community Center to the Occidental Lodge and back, ending at the Occidental Center for the Arts. Be advised the streets will close at 12:30 pm so plan to arrive and get settled early! Everyone is invited to follow the parade to the Occidental Center for the Arts for the Fool’s Party—a free community event which lasts until 4 pm.
Foolish festivities following the parade include live music by the Hubbub Club, the Casual Country band, Giant Bubbles, Kids’ Art Zone, clowns, great food & beverages, beer and wine and more. The winners of the “Silliest Costume” contest will be announced at 2:45 pm, with a prize for best adult and youth costumes. For more information about the Fool’s Parade or the other great events at OCA, go to occidentalcenterforthearts.com
It’s a little hard to pin down the origins of the parade. Some say it dates back to the seventies, when, on the first Saturday of April, Ramón Sender, an artist, musician, and visionary, costumed as “His Imperial Nothingness, Zero the Clown,” would march down the street with a toilet plunger as a scepter, rallying marchers behind him and issuing “tickets” to those who wouldn’t laugh at his jokes. Sender moved to San Francisco around 1980.
In 2006, Kate Price revived the parade. An article in the Press Democrat from 2008 noted, “Price explained she started the parade when she discovered there was no single event honoring local artists. She heard about a ‘Silly Days’ parade in the 1970s and decided to revive it and give it a new name.” The parade that year ended at the Occidental Center for the Arts, which had been recently donated by Orrin and Terri Thiessen with the development of Harmony Village, on the site of the former Harmony Elementary school. Kate participated in the parade and after-party until 2014. Ramón Sender came back to many of the parades dressed as Zero the Clown, playing his glittery accordion, and waving his toilet-plunger scepter.
The multi-talented Steve Fowler, a beloved local landscaper, activist, poet, and board member of the Occidental Center for the Arts, was the master of ceremonies up to 2024, when, sadly, he passed away a week after the parade.
This year’s master of ceremonies, Shems Peterson, took the reins in 2025. A volunteer on the OCA facility committee, Shems has also been an actor in plays produced at OCA, like “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” and “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.” This year, Shems will again be wielding the golden plunger and making proclamations. Shems says he “is looking forward to channeling his inner child because we all need to be more child-like. Let the Foolishness begin!”
So, please join all of Occidental for this marvelous, ridiculous, silly and spectacular community tradition. Whether you’re a fan of watching the parade of fools or ready to take part in the Foolishness, fun times await everyone after the parade at the OCA Fool’s Party. It’s a free community event, open to everyone. You never know what you might see at the peculiarly wonderful, flagrantly foolish Occidental Fool’s Parade.
Great to have company Darcy. Hope the rest of the crew is encouraged to join.
and Su!!