Ariens Company will not be in Optimist parade

June 9, 2023

The Brillion News

BRILLION – Ariens Company will not participate in this year's Brillion Optimist Club Electric Parade citing threats made on Facebook.

The Facebook group mentioned in the company's statement is not affiliated with the newspaper.

In light of recent threats on the Facebook Group [Brillion Views and News], we have decided to not participate in this year’s Brillion Optimist Electric Light Parade [Friday] evening. We do not want our volunteers, employees and their children put in harm’s way or to be subject to hurtful and vulgar comments. We also want to ensure this treasured family event is enjoyable for all. This is a difficult decision, and it’s been very disheartening to see these social media comments and threats. But after careful thought and consideration, we feel this is the best decision for our employees, our volunteers, and the community. However, we don’t want the children to miss out, so please accept the donation of our candy for their enjoyment. AriensCo Museum will remain open, and we invite the public to come to our sidewalk sale, Friday, 9 a.m. - 4 p.m., and Saturday, 9 a.m. to Noon. AriensCo has always been a major contributor to the Brillion community and our passion to better the community remains. Sincerely,

Larry Weyers, Chief Operating Officer and President