Group To Protest Hammonton Christmas Parade Over Kellyanne Conway Being Grand Marshal
HAMMONTON, N.J. (CBS) -- Over the decades he kept her clippings and holiday cards that sometimes had photos.
The girl Hammonton blueberry farmer Bill DiMeo knew as Kellyanne Fitzpatrick is now known throughout the nation as Kellyanne Conway, Donald Trump's campaign manager.
"I am very, very proud," says DiMeo, who went to high school with Conway's mother and hired Kellyanne to pack blueberries on his farm, Indian Brand Farms, when she was a teenager.
Kellyanne Conway To Be Grand Marshal At Hammonton Fire Department Christmas Parade
She won Hammonton's blueberry packing championship in 1987 and is about to return home for another kind of contest.
She's agreed to be a judge and grand marshal for the Hammonton Fire Department's Christmas parade.
"She's the first woman campaign manager to get a president elected to our country which I think is a pretty big feat regardless of who she got elected," says Lt. Mickey Pullia, who is a town councilman and spearheaded the effort to bring Conway to town.
He says she will also receive the key to the city.
The decision has met resistance as some who don't support Trump don't support honoring Conway.
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The announcement drew critical comments online and calls to the fire department.
The anti-fascism group "ANTIFA" is calling for a protest at the parade.
"I don't think it's appropriate. I think that you should leave her out of it. Honestly, it's been the most divisive year already, and you're going to bring politics now into this? Come on," says Alex Stein, an organizer with South Jersey ANTIFA.
He says it will be a peaceful protest and some protesters may wear Santa Claus suits or other festive attire.
Pullia, who graduated from Saint Joseph's High School with Conway, says he doesn't want the parade to turn political but he understands why some people are upset.
"As far as the protesting: no problem whatsoever. Please work with the police, be respectful of the young kids, cause this is about young kids," says Pullia.
The parade runs through downtown Hammonton at 7 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 10, followed by a family block party at the fire station on Front Street.
