Pennsylvania Residents Take Action When Town Bans “Black Out” Semi From Christmas Parade

The town of Chambersburg caused a stir among many locals by saying that the veteran tribute truck “Black Out” will not be invited to this year’s Christmas Parade because last year the driver blew his air horns and played the National Anthem — creating an atmosphere that town officials say wasn’t in line with the holiday spirit.

That is, until truck lovers and veteran supporters had their say.

Black Out Banned For Noisy Air Horns And Loud Rendition Of National Anthem

Black Out’s owner Chuck Timbrook says that his truck was a major hit during last year’s Christmas parade, especially when the custom truck sounded off its airhorn for children and played the National Anthem: “At the end of the National Anthem, the people are so patriotic there that I couldn’t even hear when I started the truck.”

As the parade continued, many observers were so enamored with Black Out that they followed it along the parade route — meaning that they missed seeing Santa Claus six vehicles back.

Timbrook said he received an email from town officials saying that Black Out would not be welcome because of last year’s noise and because they do not believe that the truck promotes a Christmas atmosphere.

Timbrook responded to the email, promising that he would not use his horn and that he would decorate the grill of the truck with a wreath.

After posting about the incident on Facebook, Timbrook said that he received an overwhelming number of responses from people disappointed that Black Out won’t be allowed in the parade, especially since the truck is custom designed to honor past and present military personnel.

UPDATE

And apparently the social media response was sufficient to convince Chambersburg town officials to see the error of their ways. As of an hour ago, Timbrook announced that Black Out was back in the parade.

Sources:
Chambersburg Public Opinion