Organizers of the annual Marysville Christmas Parade announced recently that this year’s
Grand Marshal will be Jeff Stephens, founder of SAYLove.
Before leading the nonprofit, Stephens spent 40 years farming peaches, prunes, walnuts and
melons in the region. In 2002, Stephens, along with his wife Cherie, opened Stephens
Farmhouse in Yuba City. He retired from farming in 2021, organizers said.
SAYLove, founded in 2019, and its yellow-shirted volunteers help cleanup and beautify areas of
the Yuba-Sutter community.
“The city of Marysville values the commitment Stephens and SAYLove have demonstrated in
Marysville, from improvements to Riverfront Park and Bryant Field, to community clean-ups
and assisting with trash management at the Marysville Peach Festival and the Marysville
Christmas Parade,” organizers said.
Stephens is expected to lead the 71st annual Marysville Christmas Parade as the first entry. The
parade starts at 5 p.m. on Dec. 3 in downtown Marysville