Floats carrying university students, nonprofit workers and members of Missoula's business community - 122 entries in all - paid homage to the year's theme: “Back to the Future - The Future is U!”
Missoula architectural firm CTA Architects won the 2008 Mayor's Award for literal interpretation. The group designed a Hollywood-inspired movie float that featured “Back to the Future” characters and movie artifacts. Among the creations, the 1981 stainless steel DeLorean sports car was by far the biggest crowd-pleaser.
A banner with “Diversity is the Future” and the flags of 50 nations made UM's International Student Association float look a lot more like the courtyard of the United Nations than a Saturday morning parade float.
According to Uzbek student Yelena Ablaeva, the flags represent just one-third of the national origins of some 500 international students who currently attend the university.
And no parade poised just two months from a presidential election could ever be free of political jockeying.
Area Republicans boarded a float festooned with signs supporting a John McCain-Sarah Palin victory, while Barack Obama's supporters took a much different approach.
It was evident that next-door neighbors and best pals Charlie and Abby, were fervent in their plans to stride alongside Barack Obama supporters on float No. 54. So clear were their political leanings, they never uttered a single word.
“Charlie” is a long-faced, even longer-eared, basset hound, who is no stranger to politics.
Known by various locals, and students at Paxson Elementary School, Charlie is affectionately known as “the mayor,” according to his mom, Gwen Jones.
The low-profile black-and-tan hound donned a “Bassets for Obama” sign along the length of his body, and bayed out husky-toned canine rhetoric to passers-by.
Charlie's best friend, a spunky black Labrador retriever named Abby, displayed her “Labs for Obama” torso sign with tail-wagging pride.
“They're both ready for change,” grinned Abby's mother, Elizabeth Murrer.
“And they're good at working a crowd,” said Jones.
So how did these canine buddies sift through the year's many campaign promises to select a candidate?
“They trusted our judgment because we take such good care of them,” said Jones.
But whether or not this crowd could ever agree on a candidate for the White House, most all agreed that the 13 bands marching and performing along the mile-long parade route provided worthy entertainment.
This is the second year parade organizer Suzette Dussault has coordinated the event's musical marchers.
She said the way musical participants are organized within a procession is often what makes a parade successful, and constitutes a thin line separating a snappy set of Saturday morning band music from intolerable white noise.
“It's important to keep musical entries from being pitted against one another,” she said. “It is our biggest challenge each year.”
Imagine the Celtic Dragon Pipe Band forcing the legato notes of “Danny Boy” over the top of drumbeats pelting a high school fight song.
Fortunately, that kind of aural competition hasn't ever occurred, according to Dussault. The assemblage of musical entries looks seamless because of the 250 painstaking hours of organization it requires each year, she said.
Seamless music or not, no band logged more miles than the Flathead High School Braves.
The 30 member marching band boarded a bus around 6:15 a.m. to perform in Missoula's largest annual parade.
At 9:45 a.m., drum major Becca Felde - dressed in a crisp white waistcoat with golden epaulets - turned her back on the Braves banner and stepped up to organize her peers.
Keen eyes darted in and out of a sea of French horns, trombones, giant white tubas, and a string of delicate flutes.
“Miles, you're going to be on this line,” she said, directing a trumpet player three rows back, and leaning forward to hear the faint reply amid the gallery.
“No, Kyle didn't make the bus this morning,” she said.
Reminding the youngest members to keep in step, band director Allen Slater flanked Felde, mostly to dot last-minute “i's” and cross final “t's.”
“We've marched in this parade for 19 years,” said Slater. “The crowd is really appreciative.”
Felde straigtened her jacket in a single crisp snap, eyed each button, and looked back at her bandmates with a smile as the notes of a practice bar came together.
“You guys are good,” she said.
Reporter Lori Grannis can be reached at 523-5251 or at lori.grannis@missoulian.com.
UM Homecoming Parade award winners
Headlining awards
- Grand Sweepstakes Award: The Flagship Program
- Mayor's Award: CTA Architects
- Best Theme Interpretation Award: ASUM Transportation
- Governor's Award: UM Staff Senate
- Alumni Director's Award: UM Advocates
Commercial
- 1st Place: KPAX Communications
- 2nd Place: Mountain Broadcasting
- 3rd Place: Spirit Halloween
Nonprofit
- First place: Ironworkers Local No. 14
- Second place: Jeannette Rankin Peace Center
- Third place (tie): Missoula County Democratic Party and Missoula Area Central Labor Council
University groups
- First place: Sigma Alpha Epsilon and Kappa Alpha Theta
- Second place: Latter-Day Saints Student Association
- Third place: UM Residence Life
Grade school and high school
- First place: Fort Courage Child Care
- Second place: Summit Cheering Athletes/Summit Martial Arts
- Third place: Sentinel High School Student Government
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David Barr wrote on Sep 21, 2008 11:48 AM:
David Barr GHS Band Director "