The cold, sleet and snow can’t stop the contagious festive cheer already spreading through Lawrence for one of spring’s beloved holidays – St. Patrick’s Day.

Snow didn’t stop the city’s first parade 21 years ago, said Gene Shaughnessy, 64, chairman of the Lawrence St. Patrick’s Day committee. The nonprofit organization has come a long way since then, he said, helping raise thousands of dollars for local children’s charities.

The Irish holiday is still a few weeks away, but there are plenty of events leading up to the city’s 21st annual St. Patrick’s Day Parade on March 17.

For months, the committee has planned activities to raise money for this year’s chosen charities, County Fair Swim Club and Social Service League.

Events continue this Saturday with a charity benefit auction, one of the biggest fundraisers, Shaughnessy said.

“We keep laboring away at it,” Shaughnessy said of the committee’s efforts. “It’s something that we’re just happy year to year to come up with funds to keep locally and help with kids’ activities.”

Items include four Wakarusa Festival passes, valued at $600; Kansas University Jayhawk autographed basketballs; and the chance to be the mayor of Lawrence for a day – to beat the gavel at a City Commission meeting.

Here are a few other events:

¢ People with a kick in their step can run in the 5K Shamrock Shuffle on March 8. Registration for the run/walk begins at 7 a.m. the day of the Shuffle at Johnny’s Tavern. The run/walk is on the Kansas River Levee behind the tavern and begins at 8 a.m. The fee is $20 for early entries and $25 on the day of the race. The early fee includes a T-shirt, Irish breakfast and an awards ceremony. The deadline for pre-registration is in early March.

¢ Also on March 8 is the Luck-of-the-Irish Poker Run. It starts at Slow Ride Roadhouse, 1350 N. Third St. Registration begins at noon, and motorcyclists will roll out by 1 p.m. Stops are planned at bars in Oskaloosa, Tonganoxie, Perry and Lawrence. “Sixty to 70 riders come out the first week of March and freeze to death, then play poker,” said Shaughnessy, a Harley-Davidson rider. “It’s an enticing fundraiser.”

¢ The St. Patrick’s Day queen will be crowned at 7 p.m. March 9 at The Pink Flamingo Club, 501 N. Ninth St. A dinner is set for 5 p.m. Brenda Walsh, committee co-chair, said all queen candidates help with fundraising and collect donated items for the auction.

¢ The St. Patrick’s Day Parade kicks off at 1 p.m. March 17 at South Park near 11th and Massachusetts streets. Committee members board a pickup that looks like a locomotive engine, Shaughnessy said. “We look down the parade and see all the kids; they get so excited, and their eyes are big and wide,” he said.