HONORING JIM TROUT: KEEPER OF TRADITIONS FOR THE DAISY AVENUE CHRISTMAS TREE LANE & PARADE

Photo of Jim Trout by Monique Kuhlman

Parade photos submitted by the Daisy Lane Parade

By Brittany Hart Scholten

If you’ve driven down Daisy Avenue around the holidays, you’ve surely seen adorable Christmas scenes lit up on the grassy center divider. Daisy Avenue Christmas Tree Lane and Parade is put on by a group of committed community volunteers each year and has been a community effort for over 70 years. 

Jim Trout, Community Hero

Jim Trout is one of those volunteers who helps keep the Daisy Avenue Christmas Tree Lane tradition alive. It all began in 1988 when he helped make a parade float for his daughter’s Girl Scout troop. Now, Jim is vice president of the executive board for the Wrigley Area Neighborhood Alliance [WANA] that plans and manages the lane each year and helps out with the parade. 

“Jim is out there everyday for at least two weeks after Thanksgiving; he gets the scenes out of the warehouse, gets them positioned on the lane, sets up all the electrical, gets the volunteers organized, and rents the forklift that we need to move the scenes back and forth,” shares Joan Greenwood, WANA president.“ Jim is incredible; I don’t know how we would do it without him,” she continues.

Jim Trout has called Long Beach home for more than five decades, ever since the Navy stationed him here and he met his late wife, Nanci. Together, they raised their daughters in the Wrigley neighborhood, where Jim has remained an active and dedicated member of the community. In the past, Jim served as PTA president of Birney Elementary. Now, he volunteers daily to manage the car lane at Marshall Middle School before and after school (even after his grandchildren graduated), and has been a crucial volunteer for Daisy Avenue Christmas Tree Lane for decades.

“I don't do it for the accolades,” says Jim Trout, “I volunteer because it keeps me going. It’s in my blood now, and I like that people appreciate what I do.” 

Long Beach’s First Parade

The Daisy Lane Parade, Long Beach’s first Christmas parade, began in 1953 when resident Gertrude Whittle saw an opportunity to decorate the grassy median on Daisy Avenue after the trolley tracks were removed. She worked with the city and local churches to bring the idea to life, and an annual parade was soon established.

For over 70 years, the city, different neighborhood associations and alliances have supported the lane and parade. Money has been raised through different fundraisers to keep this beloved community staple at the holidays.

With no entry fee, the parade welcomes everyone! You’ll find small neighborhood groups, youth clubs and familiar favorites like Long Beach City College, Long Beach Airport, Oropeza Elementary Folklórico dance group, and Cabrillo High School Marching Band marching down the lane together. These organizations, both big and small, bring the sights, sounds, and spirit that make the Daisy Lane Parade shine each holiday season.

For Jim Trout, every light strung and every float that makes its way down Daisy Avenue is a reminder of what makes Long Beach special—a community that shows up for each other. Thanks to Jim and countless volunteers like him, the Daisy Lane Parade isn’t just a local event; it’s a living tradition that ties generations together, illuminating not just the median on Daisy, but the heart of Wrigley itself. 

Keep an eye out for Jim, at the wheel of his antique tractor, making his way down the lane during the parade this year. And don’t forget to wave in thanks for all he’s done to keep the lights shining!