SWE-D took a tour of the Detroit Parade Company as our November event. The tour was the Saturday before Thanksgiving, so it was timed just right to see behind the scenes right before the parade!
40 SWE members, friends, and family gathered at the warehouse. Our tour guide was a cheery volunteer, who also stars in the Detroit Thanksgiving Day Parade. We were shown around the 110,000 square foot warehouse, which is an old automotive assembly plant that they bought for $1. The artists were right in the middle of the parade preparation, and we saw volunteers painting floats and getting everything ready. We toured the costume shop and saw some of the 3,000 costumes that are used in the parade.
The floats were phenomenal! From the Bookworm to Mother Goose (which has been in every parade since 1924!), we saw them all. The Three Little Pigs, Detroit Jazz Fest, as well as Santa's sleigh. Floats can be custom made upon request, and the floats can be used for other local parades.
Did you know that you can be in the parade? For $200 you can wear one of the 50-90 pound "Big Heads". For $1000, you can be part of the Distinguished Clown Corps and walk as a clown in the parade. The clowns that wear a top hat and cape are the ones who have been around the longest. Participants can go through Balloon Handling School and Float Driving School.
The group poses for a picture at the end of the tour, with our complementary clown noses!
Faith Kurily poses with a few of the "Big Heads".
