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Happy New Year!
It’s a whole new year and you could say much of the excitement and buzz of this turning of the calendar is concentrated right now in Pasadena, California, for the Tournament of Roses Rose Parade—America’s New Year Celebration.
For millions of people around the world, the Rose Parade is an iconic New Year’s Day tradition as floral-decorated floats, equestrian units, bands and other Tournament Entries travel some 5-and-a-half miles down Colorado Blvd.
This year, 2024, marks the 135th Rose Parade and for more than a century, The Salvation Army has taken to the streets on New Year’s Day to march in the Rose Parade.
In fact, it is the longest continual band to participate in the parade, having marched consecutively since 1920.
It’s made up of some 180 Salvation Army musicians and timbrelists from around Southern California and across the country and this year includes a special guest Salvation Army band ensemble from Bromley, England.
And those involved know it’s one day The Salvation Army reaches millions on TV with song titles like “Amazing Grace” or “Stand up for Jesus” displayed right there on everyone’s screen.
Leading the charge again this year as Bandmaster and here to share more about the experience with us is Kevin Larsson, Creative Development Director for the Music Department in The Salvation Army Western Territory.
Alongside him, Jim Sparks is a Salvationist from Pasadena and is believed to be the longest-running marcher this year as he joins in his 29th Rose Parade.
They’re giving us the behind the scenes today, what you don’t necessarily see on TV and why they love being part of this longstanding tradition.
Show highlights include:
- How the pair are affiliated with The Salvation Army and how many years they’ve been marching in the Rose Parade.
- Why it’s an important event for The Salvation Army in Southern California and around the world.
- What happens when you arrive, before the parade begins.
- Who makes up The Salvation Army band in the parade.
- What it’s like when you hit the first turn where all the cameras are.
- The songs that The Salvation Army will be playing this year.
- Moments that stand out over the years.
- What goes on when you reach the end of the parade.
- What each is most looking forward to for the 2024 parade.
Listen and subscribe to the Do Gooders Podcast now. Below is a transcript of the episode, edited for readability. For more information on the people and ideas in the episode, see the links at the bottom of this post.
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Christin Thieme: Kevin and Jim, welcome to the Do Gooders Podcast. Thank you for joining me today.
Kevin Larsson: You’re welcome.
Jim Sparks: Thank you.
Christin Thieme: And even though we’re recording it a little bit before, this is airing on New Year’s Day, so I feel like we should just start there and say Happy New Year to everyone.
Kevin Larsson: Yeah, Happy New Year.
Christin Thieme: You probably are wandering your way down the parade route as we speak in real time. And that’s kind of fun to think about.
This Rose Parade is a long-standing tradition in The Salvation Army and for both of you.
And while you might not have marched in all of the Rose Parades that have happened, you have been marching for quite a while. So I’m wondering if you can tell us a little bit about, what is your affiliation with The Salvation Army and how many years will this parade mark marching for each of you? Maybe Kevin, you could start.
Kevin Larsson: Sure, yeah, this will be my 25th year. And I moved over in ‘97, and I was working for Torrance Corps. But then a couple of years later, I became the DMD [Divisional Music Director] for the Southern California Division. So being part of the Rose Parade, especially the bandmaster and all the organizations fell under that job title. So ever since then, I’ve been actively involved with actually being the bandmaster and putting on the whole event as well.
I couldn’t do the first year I was here because I broke my arm playing American football just a couple of weeks before the parade.
Jim Sparks: Funny, I don’t remember that.
Kevin Larsson: Yeah, no, it was a good tackle. It was a good tackle, but I had to go to hospital. Yeah, but yeah. Yeah, but ever since then. So my first parade was ‘99 and then I’ve done 25. Of course, just missing one with the pandemic.
Christin Thieme: Oh man.
Jim Sparks: I grew up in The Salvation Army and I went to a lot of parades actually as a kid. Mostly because my dad and my grandfather marched. My grandfather marched for 60 years and my dad was somewhere around 40 years. So we went to go see them in a lot of ways. And then I started marching when I was 14 and this is year 29. It’s hard to do the math when you have to figure it out. It doesn’t make sense.
Cause year one is when you were 14, not 15. My wife had explained that to me, but yeah. So this will be my 29th year.
Kevin Larsson: Yeah, it’s inclusive.
Christin Thieme: Twenty-nine and from what we can tell, you will be the longest marching marcher this year so congratulations to you.
Kevin Larsson: Yeah.
Jim Sparks: I know it’s sad.
I didn’t think that was possible. I gotta be honest. I was a little shocked. I was convinced other people were.
Christin Thieme: Inching your way up to your grandpa’s record.
Jim Sparks: I’m not one of those marchers is like, wow, I’m definitely the longest. I’m always like, there’s a bunch of old people right here. I’m sure they’ve marched longer than me.
Christin Thieme: Haha.
Kevin Larsson: Yeah, I mean there’s a few of us in the 20s, isn’t there? Yeah.
Christin Thieme: I feel like you need an extra badge to wear.
Jim Sparks: Yeah, it is interesting. I felt like growing up you would have, there was I don’t know, there was a lot, there was some iron guys that were, they would be marching in their, you know, 40s, 50s and 60 years of marching. I mean, I see my grandfather was the longest; he marched 60 years, but it was no problem to see a bunch of people in their 30s or 40 years of marching in the parade.
Kevin Larsson: Oh yeah.
Yeah, I remember one time they put, you know, we had these jackets made up about people that have done over 25 years. But I thought quite a few of those jackets were given out on that one parade rehearsal.
Jim Sparks: Oh yeah, for sure. Yep. I have one in my front closet for my dad.
Christin Thieme: Yeah, I mean, it’s a huge commitment. So Kevin, you’ve described the Rose Parade as the world’s biggest open air. If, by chance, somebody’s listening who isn’t as familiar, doesn’t exactly know what we’re talking about, can you give us a little bit of an idea of what exactly is The Salvation Army’s involvement with the Rose Parade and how is it the world’s biggest open air?
Kevin Larsson: Yeah, well, let’s backtrack to what an open air is really. That’s kind of almost how The Salvation Army started really, especially kind of in the musical terms. So in London, the East End of London, The Salvation Army, William Booth would go out and he would do these services in the streets of London, just, you know, when there was lots of, you know, alcoholism and homelessness and stuff. And these people in the East End of London weren’t actually really allowed or invited to go into the churches of the day, you know, the, what was it called, the Anglican Church, I guess, is that the Church of England? Maybe, so they just kind of weren’t, you know, they were discouraged from being there.
So William Booth felt that they obviously needed to hear about Jesus as well, so he would start all these open air meetings, and then the brass band came along as a way of attracting people, making a lot of noise, and then people would kind of gather around, and from those moments, The Salvation Army grew incredibly, incredibly quickly with going all around the world in just a few years.
So those open air meetings were a big part of The Salvation Army history, but in recent years, they kind of just waned a little bit because it’s difficult to be able to go out on the streets with all sorts of kind of rules and regulations and stuff. So this really is our biggest chance now to do the kind of open air service. And we can’t really say much, but we have to talk through the music.
So all the music that we play, we try and make sure that it’s kind of well-known hymns and stuff, so this year we’re playing “Blessed Assurance,” “This Is My Story,” and we’re also doing “How Great Thou Art” as well, so hopefully those tunes, they’ll just kind of, people might be able to recognize those tunes and then just kind of remember, you know, kind of why exactly we’re on the parade.
Christin Thieme: Yeah, absolutely. So Jim, take us behind the scenes then. What exactly happens early in the morning when you arrive on Orange Grove Boulevard? What’s going on? What’s the scene?
Jim Sparks: Well, it’s changed over the years. It used to be a lot of fun, to be honest, because the well because the—there’s obviously a lot of rules. There’s a lot of, lot of rules involved in the parade and they run a very tight ship, which is good. It’s a very good thing. But back in the old days—I’m that person officially, apparently—we would go to the ARC [Adult Rehabilitation Center] which was right by the start of the parade, right where they house all the bands. And we would just go sit in there have coffee and donuts. And maybe warm up, I don’t know. We would be very last second to getting on the parade. And so it was kind of fun. It was a lot of hangout and now it’s cold.
Kevin Larsson: Yeah.
Christin Thieme: I’m sorry.
Jim Sparks: You’re standing there and you know, the parade is an incredibly big deal for a lot of people. And in the marching band world, it is amongst their Super Bowls to be able to march in the Rose Parade. And so when the bands are warming up, it’s very, very tight in that group. And they’re amazing groups. There are groups and they there’s showing off for sure. There’s peacock feathers flying in that section to let other people know that they deserve to be there.
Our band is a little bit more humble in our approach. But what I love about it is that we are kind of the human side of it. Because sometimes those bands could be not so human in their interactions. Because I was in marching band in high school and you’re taught to laser focus straight because it’s a competition in a lot of ways. And our approach is so vastly different.
We are talking with people on the streets. There’s regular communication going on. And I think it’s refreshing for a lot of people cause they see this kind of human version of a brass band. And that actually carries out into the street. Like when we’re in the parade, we don’t want the parade to stop ever. It’s actually far easier just to march the whole thing and knock it out. But the parade stops.
And a lot of bands will sit there and they will do their cadences or whatever. They’ll stay in place and our band often, it immediately just turns and starts talking to people and you see it in their face of surprise and, and welcome. They love it. And, the simple act of you just sitting in one of their chairs as a joke, people lose their minds. They get up and they start taking pictures and stuff like that because,
I think, The Salvation Army brings a human side. And then adding the spiritual context, what Kevin’s talking about, it becomes kind of this full emotional experience as you’re going about the parade. It’s a really neat experience, but yeah, we’re a different band and we fully have embraced that.
Christin Thieme: Yeah, I love it.
Kevin Larsson: I remember last year you had people playing your drum, didn’t you? We stopped, you took your drum off, I saw the little kids playing your drum.
Jim Sparks: Yeah. So, so the history, the history of me sitting in a chair, uh, happened because one time I was very sick at the parade. I had a very much a hundred fever, a hundred-plus fever. And I was like, I just want to do it. And, uh, I’ll gut it out. And I got really weak near the end of the parade. And I thought, Oh, I, I’m not sure I’m going to make it. And we stopped. And there was an open beach chair sitting there. And I sat down.
Christin Thieme: Oh my gosh.
Jim Sparks: And next to him was a box with just two donuts left from the morning. And I go by any chance, can I eat one of those donuts? And they’re like, yeah. This other guy goes, you alright? I go, I’m not feeling well. And so he goes, well, let me get you a Gatorade, and he got me a Gatorade. But I just remember the response that it got from everybody was like, wait, because everybody else wouldn’t even make eye contact. And this kid is just sitting here. Like I was like 17 or 18.
And so every year, if I find an opportunity to do that, I just know that it gets a reaction out of the crowd and it immediately breaks down that little barrier there that we could communicate. And like Kevin said last year, kids were playing on my bass drum and families were taking photos. And, uh, so it’s just, that part is cool. That’s the cool part of the parade.
Kevin Larsson: I’ll jump back in as well when you’re talking about how we used to do things, you know, with going to the ARC and stuff. So we did that for a couple of years. And the tournament, they always say all the things you’re not supposed to do, you know, don’t drink a bunch of coffee, don’t eat donuts, all this kind of stuff. And I mean, that’s what we used to do. So I used to go to the ARC. And the other issue is no one had tunics. So all the tunics were lined up at the ARC. Everyone had names and all this kind of stuff.
Jim Sparks: Yeah. Yeah, that’s right.
Kevin Larsson: But people would just go in there. All the bands are outside, all information warming up. And we’re all just sitting there without uniform because it’s still hung up eating donuts and coffee. And then just the right time, someone says, all right, it’s time to go. Now this is pre-dating my days. I wasn’t the bandmaster this time. So the first time I was bandmaster, we did this, but there was an issue with the buses. And we were using school buses and the dispatch lady, she couldn’t get to the office because her daughter came back really late from a party last night and blocked her in. This is all true. This is my first year. So blocked her in the driveway so she couldn’t move her car to get the dispatch office to call the driver to see where they were.
Anyway, all of this. So you can see all the buses lining up for the parade. And all the bands are on the, I was on the bridge. And you can see a big gap where The Salvation Army is supposed to be. And
Then this, which is the drum major, arrives on this bus, they’re all running up, they don’t have tunics at this point, have to run into the ARC, get all the tunics, and they’re running up to Orange Grove, and just as I was turning, they get in place, and we turn the corner and then we march the thing. But this is my first year, remember, I am in panic mode. And I really got hammered by the parade on that one. They took me out for lunch and said, that’s not gonna happen. And I don’t know if you remember, Jim, we got put at the back of the parade for two years. Do you remember this?
Jim Sparks: Yeah, we did. Yeah, we paid a penalty for it.
Kevin Larsson: Yeah, as a reprimand, we did. And we weren’t ever allowed to go to the ARC again. So that’s when that stopped. So that wasn’t a rule that I put in just to be, you know, nasty.
Christin Thieme: Yeah.
Jim Sparks: No. No, it was, it was hectic. That was a very hectic one. And I just remember a lot of people breathing as if we just ran a marathon and we had just stepped on to the, because it’s a big hill. That’s the other thing in the staging area, you have to run up a hill to get into there. It was, it was chaos, but it was fun.
Kevin Larsson: Yeah. Yeah, the music, you know, the president of the music was saying to us, you know, people look up to The Salvation Army band and you that’s, you know, and people are, you know, looking to see how you do things and we can’t have that. So yeah, I was well and truly reprimanded on that one.
Christin Thieme: Well, the process is a long one, right? I mean, you’re talking about bands who largely are high schools, colleges, that these bands for years work on getting to the Rose Parade and they have to apply—hundreds of bands apply to be in it. So how has that relationship been in existence for so long with the Rose Parade and The Salvation Army, since 1920? What is that relationship?
Kevin Larsson: Oh yeah, it’s a two-year process. Well, it was a much smaller parade back in the 1920s, for sure. So it was probably much easier for The Salvation Army band to be able to say, you know, we want to be part of this. But then kind of the legend is that there was one parade that it just absolutely chucked it down with rain. And The Salvation Army band was the only band to finish. In fact, the only entry into the parade to finish. And from that point, they said, you know, The Salvation Army will always be invited back to this parade.
So that’s legend. No one knows if that’s true, you know, but that’s a story that we like.
Jim Sparks: I believe it.
Kevin Larsson: Yeah, I believe it.
Christin Thieme: I mean here we are all these years later.
Jim Sparks: I did ask my grandfather about that and he swears by that.
Kevin Larsson: Yeah, so and that’s why so and it’s the relationship is very strong with the with the parade. So it used to be that Bill Flinn, who was the you know, the chief operating officer for years now, he was the bandmaster of The Salvation Army in Pasadena and Songster leader, you know, very kind of, I guess, a big name in both The Salvation Army and in the parade terms. And we always had the feeling that, oh, man, is it Bill that’s just keeping us in there? But since he’s retired from the parade, it seems that wasn’t the case and it’s just that the friendship between The Salvation Army and the parade is extremely strong. And it’s not something we take for granted and it’s something that we’re going to keep on building.
Jim Sparks: And the crowd genuinely receives us really well. It’s, I mean, it’s something that I haven’t been to desensitized to. For as long as I’ve marched, to see people standing up—they just stand up when we come by and start singing. Like Kevin said, we choose songs that are hymns that people know, and it’s, it’s regular, all the way down the line.
Kevin Larsson: Oh yeah.
Jim Sparks: There’s not let up on that. And so it’s a very well received group and I think the other thing that’s unique about our group is that the different age groups because they’re not used to seeing that. In the parade it’s just young people.
Kevin Larsson: Mm-hmm.
Christin Thieme: Who does make up The Salvation Army’s band? Talk a little bit about who’s part of it.
Kevin Larsson: Well, we have the local people like Jim, they’re the kind of the local musicians. So that’s, you know, we hope that’s gonna be about a third of the group, you know, maybe the numbers are kind of waning a little bit, but then we also have a guest band that come, always go on a little tour throughout the week. So this year is gonna be Bromley Temple Band. They’re from London in England. And so they do a little tour. So that’ll be another whole group that marches. And then we also invite people from all across the USA and Canada as well. And we’ll have somewhere between 80 and 100 young people that come across. So they’re the young people that make up the band.
The guest band that comes will be the normal kind of multi-generational Salvation Army band that we see kind of week-in week-out all across the world really. And then the locals once again would be a multi-generational group that come through. So it’s predominantly, I would say age between 16 to 24 with all the people coming in from the USA and Canada. But then we do have some of the older generations by those other two groups as well.
Jim Sparks: Yeah. Kind of a funny story to add to that is, um, this was a couple of years ago. And a friend of mine was with his family watching the parade. And he says to his wife, I miss marching in this parade because he marched with the Pasadena Unified Honor Band that is always there and he did it all four years. And he’s like, I miss it. I totally miss this. And she goes, well, the only way you’re going to get back in this parade is if you join that Salvation Army band, cause they let old people in it, right?
We hadn’t come by yet. We hadn’t actually come by yet, but that was in her brain. She had no affiliation with the Army at all. And so we come by not too long after she says that. And I was playing drums and because I’m playing drums, I could look around and I look over and I see Dale, my friend. And I go, Dale!
And he looks at me and he goes, I got a lot of questions. That’s all he says. I got a lot of questions and he’s like, I miss playing. How do you do that? Like how, and so we had some really cool conversations about like being in a band because he had no idea that I was musical or anything like that. We were baseball coaches together and that somehow that doesn’t come out in the dugout when you’re talking. So it was, it was cool to have that kind of interaction and, and knowing that in her head that we were a different band than everybody else because of that.
Kevin Larsson: Yeah, that’s great. Yeah, I should just jump in there to say that every musician that marches for The Salvation Army is also actively involved week-in, week-out at their own Salvation Army church. So it’s not as if we’re just inviting random people to come in. They are members and musicians of The Salvation Army.
Christin Thieme: Yeah, it’s like a little reunion every year right there on the Rose Parade. So having marched for so long, do you have any traditions to get you ready for the parade? I mean, any—like the big game superstitions or anything? Like, do you not shave for a few weeks leading up to it? Or do you wear specific socks? Like, how do you get ready for this?
Jim Sparks: Well for me, no, I don’t.
Kevin Larsson: Oh yeah, no nothing like that.
Christin Thieme: Just always ready.
Jim Sparks: I will say though, I’ve done a few things over the years. I wore brand new shoes one time and it was the most comfortable parade I ever marched in. That was the funniest part, yeah.
Kevin Larsson: Yeah, don’t do that.
Jim Sparks: I’ll tell you about it later, but it was, no, I think for me, it’s like taking your friends to Disneyland for the first time in a lot of ways. I think that’s my tradition. If I had to figure out a tradition is that when you take your friends to Disneyland and you’ve been to Disneyland a bunch of times, it’s exciting to watch their reaction to everything. And that’s, that’s what makes your experience. And for me, this, I love the trend of bringing in guest bands and then bringing in young people from all over the territory. I think that’s been a very, very cool idea. And, and I, I get to march next to people I don’t know typically, and I get to experience the parade with them in a new way, because it’s overwhelming.
I’ve done it a long time and I’m not—it’s when you walk down Orange Grove, the way it’s designed, it’s kind of tree cut, it’s like a tree line street in the beginning. There’s a lot of trees. So you can’t see the big picture yet. And then we get out to where the grandstands are, where the TVs are. And then it opens up. And once it opens up, it’s overwhelming. There’s so many people and when you turn the corner, what’s not shown on the camera, it’s there’s a slight downhill going into Oldtown. So you see a mile or two down the road and you could see the vastness of all of it. And, and just to kind of experience that in a new way, vicariously through other people every year is kind of a cool tradition for me because it’s, it’s mind boggling that many people want to go see a parade.
Kevin Larsson: Yeah, especially that early in the morning.
Christin Thieme: Not only see it, they sleep overnight on the street so they have a good spot.
Jim Sparks: That’s very true.
Kevin Larsson: They do. Yeah. And I know it doesn’t compare to the temperatures across the country, but it can still get pretty chilly there on the morning. So yeah, and traditions for me, I mean, it’s far more than the parade, though. So it’s all the events coming up. So everyone arrives quite a few days before the parade. I think that’s more of the tradition for me kind of similar to what Jim’s talking about is the whole Southern California experience.
So yeah, they’re heading up to the parade, but we take them to Disneyland, we take them to Hollywood, we do all these different things. So it’s always just kind of a really exciting week. They’re always excited and yeah, that’s kind of what the tradition would be.
Christin Thieme: Yeah, it’s a lot of fun. What’s going on then when you reach the end of the parade? We talked about the beginning of the parade. What goes on at the end?
Jim Sparks: That I probably have a very systematic tradition. Cause at the end of the parade, there’s In-N-Out Burger waiting for you…
Christin Thieme: It’s five miles total, right? Five miles?
Kevin Larsson: Right. Yep.
Jim Sparks: And if you are an experienced marcher, you know how to figure out all the system out. If you’re not an experienced marcher, you could stand in a very long line. And so as soon as we say the parade is done, I am usually one of the first ones to the van to drop off, because we have to drop off our gear and throw that stuff back in. I’m usually one of the first ones there because I don’t need to hug people. I don’t need to do that. I’m hungry. I want to get there and get in line. But what’s cool about that is you get your hamburger and then there’s a park that you’re at and, and clumps of people and it’s never like the same people you eat with. It’s not just your friends. It’s a lot of time, just availability and you’re sitting there and it’s just fun to hear everyone’s perspective of what they saw, what they experienced, or most commonly that wasn’t that bad. People build it up a lot more than probably what it actually is. And so, yeah. And then for me, I just walk home after, so that’s kind of nice.
And that actually brought out a whole different thing because I think I gained a better appreciation of what people felt like of The Salvation Army. Because I walk home usually with my either my son and or my sons and my father-in-law and we get stopped regularly. I only live about two-and-a-half, three blocks away from the end of the parade and we get stopped fairly regularly.
People saying, Hey, that was really good job. What is The Salvation Army? Right? Like we’ve had conversations like that and I could see an appreciation for that. So that was kind of cool.
Kevin Larsson: Yeah, so yeah, I’m the one who’s trying to get everyone to drop off their gear. And it’s always a right pain because it’s all the buses parked really close to each other. So I’m always there at the end, making sure people are doing that.
Jim Sparks: And they’re never in the same spot.
Kevin Larsson: Yeah, it can be a little pain. But then unfortunately, if anyone drops out, I then have to also go to the Red Cross tent and make sure everyone’s OK and sign them out as the bandmaster. I’ve got the overall responsibility for everyone right there. So I have to do all those kind of things.
And then eventually I get to go and get my burger. You know, Jim’s already finished.
Christin Thieme: Oh man. Jim’s home.
Kevin Larsson: He’s probably home by that point with his feet up.
Jim Sparks: Hey, you know what? Yep, that’s probably true. Sorry, leader.
Kevin Larsson: Yeah. It’s quite all right. We have left someone there before. I remember that.
Christin Thieme: Oh gosh.
Kevin Larsson: That was about 15 years ago. We got a call. There’s a Salvation Army guy walking around the park and stuff, but we couldn’t get back there. So we had to hang out with Bill Flinn for the rest of the day, and then we went and picked him up later. But I felt pretty, I felt quite guilty about that. Yeah.
Jim Sparks: Ha ha ha.
Kevin Larsson: Several people have been left on the bus, left meeting the buses in the morning and not making it. Yeah.
I say we’re not like the Marines, we leave people behind. So if they’re not there, if they’re not there, they’re done.
Jim Sparks: Yeah. I remember one year, the one guy missed the bus and he, he was on the freeway honking at us at the bus to pull over.
Kevin Larsson: Right. Steve you’re talking about?
Christin Thieme: Oh gosh.
Jim Sparks: Yeah, Steve, and he’s like honking, honking. And so finally the bus is like, all right, pulled over. So we pulled over in some random parking lot. He parked, he’s still wearing his pajamas and he’s holding his uniform and he got changed the bus on the way there.
Christin Thieme: Gotta pay attention.
Kevin Larsson: Yeah, oh yeah. Yeah.
Jim Sparks: Yeah. It was always a fun adventure with Steve.
Christin Thieme: Oh goodness, let’s don’t miss the bus. That’s the lesson here. So what is one specific thing you are most looking forward to this year?
Kevin Larsson: Exactly. For me, it’s Bromley band coming because that’s the band that I grew up in.
Christin Thieme: Oh cool.
Kevin Larsson: I was born in Bromley. And then we moved about a little bit. But then I came back to Bromley and I was there from 11 to 20, those ages. So they’re hugely influential years of my life, of course, being there. So that was kind of where I grew up and when I was really kind of actively involved in the corps band right there. And a lot of those people are still there.
Christin Thieme: Yeah, fun.
Kevin Larsson: It’s an amazing community band and you know, so that’s probably one of the biggest highlights I’m looking forward to is just kind of hanging out with all these guys and you know, giving them the experience of Southern California and of course the Rose Parade.
Jim Sparks: Cool. Yeah, it’s the same thing every year. The default is that I march with my two sons now and so that’s kind of fun. But probably, not more than that but in a different way, I feel like there’s different relationships that I’ve built along the parade path. I’ve generally marched on one end or another. And for the longest time I marched on the left end. But I developed relationships because these people go every single year and I see these people every year, one guy would have a three ring binder and say, I love The Salvation Army and stuff.
Christin Thieme: Cute.
Jim Sparks: And, and so kind of seeing those and, and I would engage with them to, to say, I’ll see you next year as a, as a form of a relationship and so I look forward to those, to seeing those. And then, I moved to Pasadena about 14 years ago and, and close to the parade route, wherever I start the march, I ended up trying to trade near the end. So it doesn’t affect anything so that I could see my family as we go by. But that is where my neighbors all sit.
Those a couple blocks up I get to see all my neighbor friends and I didn’t realize how many like I don’t see everybody, you can’t see everybody but they know me. And then one of my friends, his son is autistic, and it’s become a relationship now that we have to see each other in that parade. So I look forward to those moments but what, like I was just talking with my neighbor the other day and he goes, Oh, you’re with The Salvation Army band.
I’ve only had two conversations ever with him in my life. And he goes, yeah, I see you every year. And so it’s cool to engage with them in that capacity every year. And so that’s the part I think I look forward to.
Christin Thieme: I love it. Well, we will be watching and if you could give us some sort of like special signal or wave when you hit the cameras, that would be great for anyone listening. They will know it’s special.
Jim Sparks: We’re technically not allowed to do that.
Christin Thieme: Okay, well then nevermind.
Kevin Larsson: Yes, I can do that. I’m allowed. I’m not doing anything. All I do is wave. It’s good. Now I’ve got the easiest job.
Christin Thieme: Yeah, there you go. I love it. There you go.
Jim Sparks: Yeah. You can march, Christin.
Christin Thieme: I could. Yes, I could.
Kevin Larsson: Actually, we’re looking for someone to hold the banner. We still need a banner person.
Christin Thieme: All right, well, and I think that is all the time we have today.
Jim Sparks: Ha ha ha, I knew she would shut the podcast down. I knew, I knew, this was the way to end it.
Kevin Larsson: Oh, that’s right.
Christin Thieme: No, but seriously, thank you guys so much. Thanks for sharing and good luck out there. I hope it all goes well—everybody makes it off the bus and onto the route and all goes smoothly.
Kevin Larsson: Great. Thank you very much. Thank you.
Jim Sparks: Thank you, Christin.
Additional resources:
- Read more about the Tournament of Roses Rose Parade, including the 2024 lineup.
- You’ve probably seen the red kettles and thrift stores, and while we’re rightfully well known for both…The Salvation Army is so much more than red kettles and thrift stores. So who are we? What do we do? Where? Right this way for Salvation Army 101.
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