Teagan Schmidt, left, and Harper Schmidt, right, carry the official banner during Dysart’s 5th annual Iowa’s Shortest St. Patrick’s Day Parade which took place on Friday, March 20, 2026, after being rescheduled from St. Patrick’s Day proper (Tuesday) due to nasty weather. The girls, visiting from Florida, are nieces of Tama County Sheriff Casey Schmidt and his wife Cady who reside in Dysart. PHOTO BY RUBY F. MCALLISTER

DYSART – It took five years (and a reschedule) for ‘Iowa’s Shortest St. Patrick’s Day Parade’ in downtown Dysart to finally experience the true luck o’ the Irish via warm temperatures, but for Mayor Tim Glenn, it was well worth the wait – and delay.

“Hoping for a 40-plus degree day and no wind this year,” Glenn told the newspaper ahead of the planned Tuesday, March 17 parade.

For the past four years, per newspaper reporting, the parade has seen drizzle, rain and cold (2022); howling north winds coupled with temperatures in the mid 20s that felt at least 10 degrees colder (2023); sunny skies with temperatures around 50 degrees but wicked northeast gales making it feel much colder (2024); and wicked winds from the northwest that made the low-40 temps feel, again, much colder (2025).

The Sunday-Monday prior to this year’s St. Patrick’s Day found Iowa pummeled by a late-season blizzard that closed interstates and highways while dumping up to three inches of snow locally and plunging wind chills well below zero.

Tuesday morning, St. Patrick’s Day, was not forecast to be much of an improvement, leading Mayor Glenn to announce on social media, “After serious consideration and our wonderful pre-spring weather, the … committee has made the difficult decision to move the parade to Friday.” The forecast for Friday, March 20 – the Spring Equinox – was looking at that point to be mid-60s temperature-wise and sunny skies.

Dysart Mayor Tim Glenn smiles to the crowd while leading the rescheduled 5th annual Iowa’s Shortest St. Patrick’s Day Parade down Main Street last Friday. This year’s parade experienced warm weather for the first time since its inaugural year in 2022. PHOTO BY RUBY F. MCALLISTER

The forecast, thankfully, did not disappoint.

“A great day!” Glenn told the newspaper following the rescheduled parade. While both attendance and parade participation were down slightly this year – possibly due to the date change – the wee turnout was tiny but mighty.

Dysart Police Chief Joe Hols and Tama County Sheriff Casey Schmidt led the parade in their respective law enforcement vehicles. Shortly behind, the sheriff’s nieces, Teagan Schmidt, 9, and Harper Schmidt, 7, carried the official parade banner. The girls were visiting Dysart from Florida for spring break, their aunt Cady Schmidt told the newspaper.

Walking alongside the parade with a golf iron in hand, Mayor Glenn greeted the public in his traditional kilt, beaming with pride. When asked how deep his Irish roots run, the mayor said his relative, Nicholas Glynn (original spelling), arrived in Philadelphia from County Galway in 1840. On his maternal side, he added, his great-great-grandmother was a Curran from County Cork.

Dysart-Geneseo Elementary fifth-grader Breck Kaiser also featured in the parade, riding in a decorated golf cart piloted by his mother, city clerk Tabby Kaiser. Breck filled in as Grand Marshal this year, the mayor said, handling American flag duties while passing out gold coins along the route.

PHOT BY RUBY F. MCALLISTER

Several additional decorated golf carts and parade walkers also participated. Closing out the parade, vehicles from Dysart Fire & Rescue, Dysart Ambulance, and the Tama County Sheriff’s Office were on display.

The wee parade ended almost as quickly as it began – processing exactly one block down Main Street from City Hall to Clark Street, buffeted by a brisk north wind.

Following the parade, folks lingered along the sidewalks, seemingly basking in the warm sunshine before heading home, back to work, or into one of the downtown eating establishments, including Harper’s Public House and KE Black Mercantile.

A near-perfect event that only took five years, one reschedule, and a bit o’ Irish luck.

PHOT BY RUBY F. MCALLISTER

PHOT BY RUBY F. MCALLISTER

PHOT BY RUBY F. MCALLISTER

PHOT BY RUBY F. MCALLISTER

The ladies of KE Black Mercantile were all smiles last Friday ahead of the parade. From left, Amanda Schneider, Rene Ternus, and Kathy Bonewitz. PHOTO BY RUBY F. MCALLISTER