Across town krewes are preparing to celebrate Mardi Gras the best way they know how.

Parade floats are taking shape for the city’s Mardi Gras Parade scheduled for 4 p.m. Saturday through downtown Vicksburg.

“It’s suppose to be really pretty on Saturday,” Vicksburg Main Street executive director Kim Hopkins said. “I think we’ll have a great crowd for the parade.”

Barricades will start to go up at 9 a.m. Saturday along the parade route that starts on Belmont Street continues north on Washington Street and ends at Jackson Street. Parking will be available in the downtown parking garages.

“All the businesses will be open downtown,” Hopkins said. “Everybody come down and start Valentine’s shopping and have lunch and enjoy the day.”

Nearly 40 floats have been entered into the parade that gives out awards for best in show, best in business, best non-profit, best throws, most original, most enthusiastic and best recreational club.

Last year’s most original award went to Robyn Lea State Farm for a decorated party boat.

“We don’t have access to that this year so we are actually using a trailer,” Lea said.

She said she was shocked when parade directors called her last year to tell her she won the award.

“We were excited that we won, but I really didn’t even know that they gave out awards,” Lea said.

This year’s trailer float will have hay bales in it and will be covered in decorations. The former New Orleans resident ordered 3,000 beads to throw throughout the parade.

“I think this is such a great parade,” Lea said. “It’s such a family atmosphere.”

In addition to the returning krewes, many new groups have entered this year’s parade including McCarty Bookkeeping & Payroll Service LLC. Sissy McCarty said she joined the parade to advertise her business.

“I figured that’d be the best way to get my name where people could see it,” McCarty said.

Her husband Dalton will drive the float that will carry her, her daughter and granddaughter. She plans to throw beads and hand out hats, masks and horns to children. The float features a large mask and jester with lots of festive colors and lights.

“I really can’t describe my float,” McCarty said. “You’ll just have to see it!”

Another new krewe will be the Vicksburg YMCA.

“We have a new executive director, and he has participated in Mardi Gras parades for work when he was at the Gulf Coast Y. He got us all fired up,” Mille Wolfe, program director for childcare and camping operations said.

Staff, family and YMCA members will be throwing beads, T-shirts and one-day passes to the Y from their float. A spin bike class will be featured on the float, and the members of the Village People are going to walk alongside the float.

Danny Hearn Trucking has a history one doing well on the parade circuit with six best in show awards, three best business awards and a most enthusiastic award at the Mardi Gras parade alone.

“It seems like the more we do it, the more fun we have,” Sandy Hearn said.

As the reigning best in show winner, this year the group is taking on a Minions theme, which is similar to their Christmas parade float because of the short turnaround with Mardi Gras being a little earlier this year.

“It takes a lot. It’s not something you just throw together,” Hearn said.

The float features a smoke machine and an air cannon. This year they have planned to throw over 1,000 stuffed animals, artificial long-stemmed roses and beads. Hearn works with children with special needs in multiple organizations including Special Olympics and Jacob’s Ladder who join her on the float.

“When you see the look on their face, they’re just as happy as they can be. They’re on top of the world,” Hearn said.

The Hearns usually make a day of it by starting to decorate around 8:30 a.m. the day of the parade and then having their own party after the parade. While preparations are taking place, most krewes are not assembling their floats until the day of the parade.

She doesn’t want to get her hopes up, but she would really like to win another award this year.

“We’re there for the fun,” Hearn said.

This year’s queen is Pat Hemphill and the king will be new University of Southern Mississippi head coach Jay Hopson.