Daylight Saving Time And Important March Dates For Indianapolis

Spring officially arrives Tuesday, March 20, and people in Indianapolis are already starting to shake off winter and fill the calendar with events. One big one in Indianapolis is the 38th Annual St. Patrick's Day Parade, detailed below.

Spring arrives when the vernal equinox officially arrives at 12:15 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time on the 20th. That's when the Northern Hemisphere starts to tilt toward the sun, bringing earlier sunrises, later sunsets, softer winds and green plants sprouting from the ground. In theory. Let's hope so.

Here are a few need-to-know dates in Indianapolis:

March 11: Daylight Saving Time actually arrives before the start of spring. Remember the maxim — spring forward, and set your clock ahead an hour. Most cell phones and devices will automatically update.

March 17: St. Patrick's Day falls on a Saturday this year, so expect extra revelry this year. According to indystpats.com, big St. Patrick's Day events in Indianapolis include:

• Hoosier Lottery Greening of the Canal - 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. at Ohio and West Street, East of fire station (13)
• 38th Annual St. Patrick's Day Parade - 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. starting at North and Pennsylvania and ending at Meridian and Vermont.
• 27th Annual Shamrock Run & Walk - 10 a.m. start time, 5 p.m. event end time as there will be a pre and post-event celebration at the heated tent Indianapolis Firefighters Union Hall on Mass Ave, with entertainment, food and a beer garden. Visit shamrockrunwalk.com for the course map.

March 24: The national "March for our Lives" rally protesting gun violence and calling for an end to school shootings takes place in Washington, D.C., and many cities across the country. The national event is being spearheaded by students in Parkland, Florida, who survived the Feb. 14 mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. An Indianapolis march will be held at 11 a.m. that morning at Monument Circle's Soldiers and Sailors Monument.

March 30: This date marks important religious holidays for Christians and Jews. It's Good Friday, which begins the four-day Easter observance for Christians. For Jews, it's the beginning of the seven-day Passover observance. Archdiocese of Indianapolis provides a list of all Catholic parishes if you'd like to attend a certain Good Friday or Easter mass. The Jewish Federation of Greater Indianapolisalso has event information for those who would like to attend a Passover Seder.

Patch file photo - Image via Patch