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Local volunteers, Steve Reber, left, and Dale Martin, build a Christmas Parade float Thursday in Reber's garage in Bend.
They're working on the float for Christmas of Change, an organization that collects money for local charities. The float is one of many that will line up on Bend's west side Saturday as the Bend Christmas Parade prepares to crawl through the streets of downtown to kick off a season of holiday cheer.
The parade route will be closed to traffic starting around 11 a.m. Saturday. The parade should cross the Newport Avenue bridge at noon Saturday. Streets will be reopened as the parade passes and should be open to traffic by around 2 p.m.