vidalia &8212; No sign of the Christmas season was evident in the big warehouse at Camo Construction Wednesday. A few dedicated employees of Concordia Bank & Trust were about to change that, however.

Soft rock blared from a Camo radio on the other side of the building. Christmas tunes might have helped Jeneen Newbill and Abby Seagrest, the first two volunteers to show up to prepare the Concordia Bank float for the upcoming Christmas parades.

With only a bare flatbed trailer, some paper, a small angel and a skirt to trim the bottom of the float, the two women began the daunting task of building a float.

&8220;First we&8217;ll cover the whole thing with this bulletin board paper,&8221; said Newbill, who was anxious to get started. &8220;Then we&8217;ll put the skirt around it.&8221;

Themes of the first two parades &8212; the ones in Ferriday at 10 a.m. Saturday and in Vidalia at 3 p.m. Sunday &8212; are the same, &8220;Peace on Earth.&8221;

In Natchez, the theme is different, and the volunteers discussed how to make a few adjustments to convert the float to the new theme for the Natchez parade, &8220;Glitter, Glow, Gifts and Snow,&8221; to be held at 3 p.m. on Dec. 11.

Sharon Huff, spokeswoman for Concordia Bank, said each year a new group of employees volunteers to build the float. &8220;This year, eight people are working on it. Somehow we pull it all together,&8221; she said. &8220;It takes a lot of team work.&8221;

Vicky Alexander, leader of Girl Scout Troop 612, said her 12 Scouts, ages 7 to 14, also are excited about the upcoming parade in Natchez. &8220;We&8217;ll meet Tuesday, and they&8217;re supposed to come with ideas for our float,&8221; she said. &8220;We have a super-dad who pulls the float for us.&8221;

Tammi Gardner, executive director of Downtown Development Association, said the Natchez parade should be colorful and fun. &8220;We always have people who are excited about the parade and go all out,&8221; she said.

Businesses that take part get to show their patrons a different side, Newbill said. &8220;I think it&8217;s a good thing to let people in your town see you doing things out in the community and, in my case, not just at the bank.&8221;

Huff said the bank&8217;s parade participation gets a big boost from Mike Grantham and his construction company. &8220;We use the Camo Construction building and his trailer and truck,&8221; she said.