Community groups, recycling companies and government organizations marched along Massachusetts Street on Saturday in celebration of Earth Day.

Rising and standing high above the crowd, Mark Jones, left, and his daughter Amanda Jones, right, spread some sunshine on other participates in Seventh Annual Parade for the Earth. The parade and Earth Day celebration took place in downtown and in South Park Saturday.

Linda Klinker, chairwoman of CANS for the Community, pulled a wagon with strings of aluminum cans tied to it along the street.

The organization works to recycle cans and donates proceeds from the sale of the cans to charity.

They’ve donated $13,000 since organizing two years ago.

Stacey and Scott White, of Lawrence, were dressed as crabs and carried a sign reading “Earth Day is no time to be crabby.”

“We could spend the other 364 days of the year working on environmental problems, and this is the day we celebrate,” Stacey White said. “Plus, who doesn’t like to be in a parade?”

Sarah Rooney, Lawrence, cheers for bicycle riding as an environmentally friendly mode of transportation as she pedals along Massachusetts Street. The seventh annual Parade for the Earth and Earth Day celebration took place Saturday downtown and in South Park.

The couple said they participate in the parade every year with their children, each year dressing as something different.

A small gathering of people watched the parade as it left Watson Park, went along Massachusetts Street and ended at South Park.

Following the parade was an Earth Day gathering at South Park where displays, vendors and performers gathered on a windy and sunny afternoon.

It afforded Aron Cromwell an opportunity to reach a target audience for his business.

His display for Cromwell Environmental, a Kansas City-based company, showed how people can equip their homes with solar and wind power, a trend that Cromwell has found becoming increasingly popular in recent years.

Those who do business with him, as well as the people he encountered during Saturday’s Earth Day gathering, don’t all fit into the environmentalist stereotype.

“The environmental movement is no longer affiliated with one political party,” Cromwell said. “This was a very diverse crowd. It wasn’t all tree-huggers; it’s a nice cross-section of folks out here.”

A group assembled at Liberty Hall for the third year of the Earth Day Fashion Show.

Randi Pounds, a Kansas University senior, was the first of about 80 models to hit the stage and strike a pose.

“I didn’t think there would be that many people out there,” Pounds said. “I’m always kind of nervous getting in front of people.”

Nevertheless, it didn’t take much convincing from her friends to participate in the fashion show, which is presented by Lada Salon and Spa, 4931 W. Sixth St.

“It’s always fun to go out and get your hair done and hang out with your friends all day,” she said.

Between a silent auction for items donated from local businesses – ranging from bracelets with a starting bid of $5 to teeth cleaning sessions starting at $50 – and ticket sales, Lada owner Mark Chapman said he hoped to raise money for the Clean Water Fund.

He chose the Clean Water Fund in part because his spa carries products by Aveda Corp., which selected the fund as its Earth month partner.

“The first year, we raised $3,000, the next year we raised $4,000,” Chapman said. “So my goal (this year) is $5,000.”