ROCK HILL, S.C. — It was a weekend one band director with Rock Hill Schools won't ever forget.
James Turner works at South Pointe High School and recently had the opportunity to march in the Rose Parade on Saturday, Jan. 1, in California.
It was all part of the Pasadena Tournament of Roses. The parade happens before the annual Rose Bowl college football game.
"It was an experience I will never ever forget," Turner told WCNC Charlotte on Monday. "Thousands and thousands of people lining the streets. The fact they cheered us on, all five-and-a-half miles, it was tremendous. It was just unforgettable."
According to a news release sent to WCNC Charlotte, a custom-designed animated float led a "marching band of band directors" with 270 members from across the U.S. and Mexico. The band performed an original arrangement by music composer Lisa Galvin of Meredith Wilson’s “Seventy-Six Trombones” on Saturday.
Turner played the sousaphone in the parade.
The Michael D. Sewell Memorial Foundation, based out of Ohio, sponsored the float.
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Turner, who has been teaching for 25 years and has spent 16 with South Pointe, says it has been a lifelong dream to take part in the parade.
He added it was a pleasure going through the experience with his family.
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