The largest St. Patrick’s Day parade to date strolled down Massachusetts Street this afternoon, featuring everything green — firetrucks and dyed dogs included.

The 17th annual parade honored servicemen and benefitted the Crown Casting Club, an organization that teaches youth how to fish and be respectful of nature.

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For Andrew Ballock, 7, Eudora, and his younger brother Mitchell, this was the first Lawrence St. Patrick’s Day parade they could remember. It was also a learning experience. Both boys are home-schooled by their mother, LaDonna.

“We try to study different cultures,” LaDonna Ballock said. “I thought coming here would be a nice taste.”

Though there wasn’t as much Irish culture-related floats as she would have liked, LaDonna said it was fun to see the festivities.

The parade’s grand marshal was Brian McRae, a former Kansas City Royals baseball player. McRae also played for the Chicago Cubs, New York Mets, Colorado Rockies and Toronto Blue Jays.

The Paddy wagon totes St. Patrick's Day parade goers down Massachusetts street on Wednesday in Lawrence.

The queen was Breanne Patton, a graduate of Kansas University.

Massachusetts Street was closed downtown for the event. The parade began at South Park, just south of 11th Street and continued on Massachusetts through downtown Lawrence.

The parade continued over the Kansas River Bridge to North Second Street, then east on Locust Street to North Ninth Street, ending at the Flamingo Club, 501 N. Ninth St.

For highlights of the parade, watch 6News at 6 p.m. and 10 p.m. on Sunflower Broadband Channel 6. Also, pick up a copy of tomorrow’s Journal-World, and return to LJWorld.com tomorrow for a parade photogallery and more.

Sunflower Broadband Channel 6 will replay the parade in its entirety at 7:30 tonight, 10 a.m. Thursday, 10:30 a.m. Friday and 11 a.m. Saturday.