One down, seven to go.
The Parade Company and Huntington Bank unveiled a new float, “Making Lives Better,” at The Parade Company’s 26th Annual Pancake Breakfast. The breakfast, a staple of the company’s Thanksiving that is presented by Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, was attended by hundreds of business and community leaders.
The float one of eight entering the parade lineup this year, will make its debut in America’s Thanksgiving Parade presented by Gardner White on Nov. 27.
Unveiling the floats is one of the favorite perks of the job for Tony Michaels, president and CEO of The Parade Company.
“It’s awesome,” Michaels said. “It’s the best feeling in the world. Today we did the Huntington Bank float; we have seven more to go. Next year we’ll have six. The year after that we’re probably going to have nine. It just keeps going.”
The Parade Company kicks off it’s busiest season with four events – the breakfast, the Hob Nobble Gobble, the Turkey Trot and the parade – all by Thanksgiving.
The Pancake Breakfast is sponsored by Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Michigan, which had its own new float debut last year. Tricia Keith, the president and CEO of BCBSM, said sponsoring the breakfast continues the company’s “long history of not only supporting the Parade Company, but supporting the community in general.”
“There’s no better place to be at Thanksgiving than Detroit, right?” Keith said. We know that we like to have fun (and) we carry a serious message, too. That’s why our float conjures a better state of health, because that’s what we try to bring forward. There’s nothing better than kicking off this season. We’re delighted to be part of it.”
The new Huntington float, which Parade Company artists poured 2,080 hours into crafting, towers 25 feet high when fully upright, and was brought to life with 100 gallons of Huntington green paint, is a 120-foot-long masterpiece that brings to life Huntington’s focus on making lives better by helping businesses grow and uplifting the communities it serves.
“We love Detroit and there’s no better place to be on Thanksgiving than right here at our commercial headquarters and in the heart of the city,” said Mike Land, Regional President Southeast Michigan and Northwest Ohio for Huntington National Bank. “America’s Thanksgiving Parade is about community, family and working together to make lives better, values that are foundational to Huntington Bank and the way we approach our work every day.”
Voted as America’s Number One Holiday Parade by USA Today, America’s Thanksgiving Parade, presented by Gardner White, takes place Thursday, Nov. 27. The 99th America’s Thanksgiving Parade theme is “Thanksgiving is Better in Detroit!” and the parade is broadcast live on WDIV Local 4 from 10 a.m. to noon and nationally to millions of viewers across 185 major cities in the U.S. The parade is also broadcast on 760 WJR and Audacy WOMC 104.3. For more information, visit theparade.org.
