In November 1962, 1500 Dixwell Community school children competed in a poster contest to create an image of "Freddy Fixer." The winning poster depicted a character with eyes, arms and legs, who was built like a monkey wrench and equipped with a hammer, saw, paintbrush and can.

Plans were also being formulated to create Freddy Fixer clubs for school children. The resulting clubs eventually participated in various activities to maintain clean, good-looking neighborhoods. A parade was planned for the following spring.

On May 18, 1963, the first Freddy Fixer Parade took place. According to police figures 7000 people watched. My father, Chairman of the Freddy Fixer Parade Committee for the first five years, marched.

A number of Freddy Fixer events were scheduled for parade weekends: beauty pageants, essay contests in the schools on community leadership, barbeques, basketball games, and dances.

The parade route changed over time, but it always included black Dixwell and main avenues near or through other parts of New Haven's traditionally black neighborhoods. The parade lasted between two-and-three hours, and prizes were awarded for the best marching, drilling and band units.