become eager petal pushers As the parade traveled down Orange Grove Boulevard, the same phrase was on each of their lips – I did it! Both children and adults alike beamed with pride as the group from St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Hilton took in the entire splendor of the Tournament of Roses Parade, January 1. The 13-member group traveled to Pasadena, California to help assemble the massive floats that make up the parade. St. Paul’s crew was joined by thousands of fellow "petal pushers" who came from all across the country to lend a hand. Lutheran Hour Ministries, which has had a float in the parade for more than 50 years, organized the volunteers. The religious organization has a long-standing agreement with Phoenix Decorations which funds the Lutheran float in return for all of the helping hands. It was the second trip for St. Paul’s youth group leader Eric Gardner, who went two years ago. He has been planning a return visit ever since he arrived home from his first live parade experience. His wife, Sue, who helped chaperone, said the two trips have really given them an appreciation for what goes into the event. "We were amazed with the work and the time needed," said Sue. "You just can’t comprehend it watching it on television." For Jessie Ranieir, who joined her sister Stacey, the parade was a huge thrill. Getting ready for the parade, however, was serious work. "It surprised me how many flowers there were and how huge the floats were," said Jessie. "And the detail was meticulous. If you had to put beans on something, you had to glue each one on separately." Float construction begins shortly after the previous year's parade is over. The process starts with a specially built chassis, upon which is built a framework of steel and chicken wire. The frame is then sprayed with a polyvinyl material, which is then painted in the colors of the flowers to be applied later. Every inch of the float must be covered with flowers or other natural materials, such as leaves, seeds, or bark. Volunteer workers swarm over the floats in the days after Christmas, their hands and clothes covered with glue and petals. The most delicate flowers are placed in individual vials of water, which are set into the float one by one. Parade officials estimate that the decoration process requires more flowers than the average florist goes through in five years. Hard work was no stranger to the St. Paul’s crew. They put in a lot of effort even before their plane took off for California. They sold doughnuts, operated a car wash and built angels and manger scenes, which were sold before Christmas. Once there, they worked from 3 to 11 p.m. for the three days leading up to the parade. They were mainly focused on a yellow submarine float owned by Farmers Insurance Group. The majority of the time was spent adding flowers and other organic material to the float – a tedious and exhausting process. For Hilton High School eleventh grader Valerie Mikels, the fun extended beyond the parade. She enjoyed the sightseeing the group was able to do when off duty, including some quality beach time. Her father, Bill, who helped chaperone, said he had a good time as well, but hoped that the children were able to walk away with some valuable lessons. "I hope that they gained an appreciation for working together as a team," said Bill. "With a project of this magnitude everyone has to give in a little to get things done." Ashley Johnson, a Hilton High School tenth grader, enjoyed the time she spent with her friends and the opportunity to make new friends. "I was glad that I got to meet a lot of different people," said Ashley. "I would definitely like to do this again." Eric Gardner said he plans to have the youth group return to the parade two years from now and would like to see some of the same kids make the trip. "This was a really great, hardworking group," said Eric. "I was really proud that they quickly got a reputation among the other volunteers for being good workers." |
