Thousands celebrate their heritage at Toronto’s Portugal Day festivities

It was Orlando Pascoal’s first Portugal Day Parade. The 7-year-old squealed in excitement when he saw a float with a giant fish on it.

“The parade is amazing,” he said.

His grandmother, Teresa Pascoal, laughed. Her nails were painted green and red as she waved a Portuguese flag in one hand and a Canada 150 flag in the other.

Orlando, she said, is a third-generation Portuguese Canadian and she brought him to the parade because it’s one way of familiarizing him with his roots.

On Saturday, families lined the sidewalk on Dundas St. W. between Lansdowne Ave. and Trinity Bellwoods Park to watch the parade’s 30th edition.

The event included 10,000 participants, 89 organizations, 43 floats and 26 folklore groups representing the diversity, community and culture of Portugal, said Jose M. Eustaquio, chair of Portugal Week celebrations.

“I feel so blessed and so lucky to live in Canada, (which) allows me to celebrate my culture from back home in this unique atmosphere,” Eustaquio said.

“Our parents came here to give us a better future, and they really did,” said Sandy Joseph, who was at the parade with her two daughters, Khloe, 2, and Maya, 4, who wore matching dresses. “We are very proud to be here in Canada but never forgetting our roots.”

Mayor John Tory walked the parade route, stopping to talk to people, shake hands and pose for photographs.

“The Portuguese community has been here for decades,” he said. “They’ve contributed so much to the building of the city in so many ways, and it’s my chance to show my own affection and respect for a great community.”

The parade is also a way to show that we live in a country where people respect each other and celebrate differences, Tory said. “It’s unique in the world.”

Liberal MPP Cristina Martins (Davenport), who was born in Portugal and raised here, said it is important that Torontonians don’t forget their roots. In knowing where we came, we can move forward, she said.