by Caitlin Mota

The streets of Downtown Jersey City will become a sea of green, white and red on Saturday when the city's annual Columbus Day Parade returns for a sixth year. The parade will set out from Dickinson High School at 1 p.m. and make its way through Downtown Jersey City before concluding at City Hall. Leading it all will be this year's grand marshal, Daniel Altilio, president and CPO of the United Way of Hudson County.

"He's a wonderful guy but he is so involved in so many committees and boards and has received dozens of awards in the Hudson County area," said Nicholas Grillo, the parade committee's president. "One of his big missions with the United Way is putting and end to homelessness. We were blown away by his credentials." While Monday is recognized as an official state holiday, Saturday's event in Jersey City is less about the controversial Italian-born explorer and more about celebrating Italian-American culture and heritage on a local level, Grillo said.

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Source: http://www.nj.com/