Tony Michaels had to watch his alma mater, Grosse Pointe South, have its dream season end in a 35-21 loss to Warren De La Salle in a District 2 district high school football final Friday night.
It’s the only thing that went wrong for Michaels, Friday. It capped a day when Michaels, president and CEO of The Parade Company, presided over the 25th annual Pancake Breakfast, the traditional kickoff of the parade season in Detroit.
The breakfast, attended by hundreds of business and community leaders, featured the unveiling of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan’s brand new float, “A Better State of Health,” that will debut in the 2024 America’s Thanksgiving Parade.
The float, which runs more than 100 feet long and stands 25 feet high, features three distinct units:
- One with more than 12 large characters shaped like “Blue Cross cards” and enjoying healthy lifestyle activities.
- The second unit features three signature Blue Cross buildings from Grand Rapids, Lansing and downtown Detroit exemplifying BCBSM’s reach throughout the state.
- The third piece represents BCBSM’s commitment to providing patients “Around the Clock Care” and includes more than two dozen larger-than-life, hand sculpted clocks.
BCBSM president and CEO Dan Loepp said the new float symbolizes the fact that the group is a part of the fabric of the state.
“It really depicts who we are. We’ve had a float, I think, for 44 years now. It’s been a great partnership,” said Loepp, who said he first attended the Detroit parade when he was 5 years old. “It’s almost a 65-year part of Thanksgiving for me. To be a part of it … to me is a labor of love that’s been a great part of my 19 years of leadership with Blue Cross.”
Michaels expressed his appreciation for BCBSM and for Loepp, who is retiring at the end of the year. As part of his appreciation, Michaels introduced a performance by the marching band of De La Salle, which ironically is Loepp’s alma mater.
“Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan is an incredible partner for The Parade Company, and we are so appreciative of (Loepp’s) exceptional leadership and tireless dedication to our community,” Michaels said. “This float exemplifies their ongoing commitment to improving the lives of the people of Michigan every day.”
Loepp has been named one of three grand marshals for the parade. The others are retiring U.S. Senator Debbie Stabenow and NBC sportscaster Mike Tirico.
The pancake breakfast also gave Michaels a chance to announce Gardner White has signed on as the parade’s presenting sponsor through at least 2031.
And it all gets started with the pancake breakfast, presented by BCBSM. The idea, Michaels said, it to “bring the community together” to “see new floats and to take in the beginning of the season.”
“Thanksgiving is only three weeks away,” Michaels said. “It’s a whole array of people to come together and kick off the holiday season. (Thanksgiving) morning is going to be electric. It’s going to be one heck of a morning. The parade means everything to Detroit. It’s the heart and soul of the city.”
Voted as America’s Number One Holiday Parade by USA TODAY 10 Best Readers’ Choice Awards, America’s Thanksgiving Parade presented by Gardner White takes place on Thursday, Nov. 28.
For a gallery of photos from the Pancake Breakfast, click here.
