Society Rekkens Volksfeest was founded on October 1, 1910. It was the pastor of the village who suggested the idea of an annual procession. He was under the assumption that if one held a procession, this would lead to a reduction in alcohol consumption. Whether that was the outcome, is still the question. However, the idea of a parade caught on and people first got active within a group of friends and later per neighborhood; they came up with beautifully decorated cars.
In those first years only a few cars took part in the annual parade and therefore every decorated car could participate. At that time, the Rekken procession was still an allegorical procession. The fifties and sixties turned out to be the years of growth and progress. More and more dahlias were being processed and the cars got bigger and more beautiful in color. A trend that continued the following years. From 1965 only dahlia-decorated cars were allowed to ride and this is still the case today.
Every year, residents and former residents of Rekken ensure that there are twelve large cars and around 35 small ones, which stroll through the streets with their colorful dahlia creations. The cars often have a current theme which makes our parade so unique. More than one million dahlias are processed in beautiful color combinations, and quality is highly regarded. The quality and topicality are decisive, more so than the size of the cars.
The flower parade Rekken is held on Wednesday and Thursday in the last full week of August. The procession goes through the outskirts of Rekken. The corso cars can be admired spatially well and without entrance fee! On the Thursday morning the procession traditionally crosses the border to let our German neighbors enjoy the beautiful parade. Since the 90th anniversary in 2000, the parade crosses the border once every three years. The Rekkens flower parade then also goes through the streets of Vreden on Friday afternoons, where thousands of people admire our parade.
