'This is the parade you're looking for'
Leadership in action: Left, Linda Leigh and Doreen Kruger lead the Blazen Divaz into Philly’s heart; right, leading a perfectly nice young family to the Dark Side. (JIM MOWREADER/Press)
The Divaz dance on Philly’s Logan Square to the sounds of Sia’s “Candy Cane Lane.” Photos by JIM MOWREADER/Press
The Blazen Bakerz brought up the rear.
A “100” made of balloons leads the parade down the Benjamin Franklin Parkway. (JIM MOWREADER/Press)
Cinderella and Prince Charming. (JIM MOWREADER/Press)
The 501st Legion, a group that portrays Star Wars villains, marched with Rebel Legion, a similar group that glorifies the saga’s heroes. (JIM MOWREADER/Press)
Rocking the beat… (JIM MOWREADER/Press)
The magnificent Wheelmen, not all of whom are actually Men, dally on the public ways atop their frivolous conveyances. (JIM MOWREADER/Press)
Many parade units came from outside Pennsylvania. This drill team is from Gulf Coast High School, Naples, Fla. (JIM MOWREADER/Press)
The wind kept most of the mascots out of the march, but there were a few.. This is a Congressman. (JIM MOWREADER/Press)
The Defender of the Season. (JIM MOWREADER/Press)
The man and woman of the hour, Santa and Mrs. Claus. (JIM MOWREADER/Press)
By JIM MOWREADER
Staff Writer
PHILADELPHIA — The Divaz were Blazen.
The weather? Not so much.
The Northeast is famous for its winter winds. On Thanksgiving morning, Philadelphia was hit by an especially bad one — bad enough that the organizers of the 100th 6ABC Dunkin’ Donuts Thanksgiving Day Parade grounded all the balloons.
Fortunately, Philadelphians are windproof. Some of the announced participants, like the balloons, the Philadelphia Eagles football players and the city’s pro sports mascots, weren’t able to come out … but the townspeople did, in droves. They saw a great parade.
And I would love to be able to tell you that the stars of the parade were Coeur d’Alene’s own Blazen Divaz drill team. In a parade that was full of high school marching bands from all over the Eastern U.S., our Divaz stood out. They had great choreography, costumes, props and makeup, and they just glowed through the wind. The Divaz danced to two numbers, “Candy Cane Lane” by Sia and Madonna’s “Holiday.” Their spirits were as high as their energy. The crowd loved them.
But then came Garrison Carida, Philadelphia’s chapter of the 501st Legion. The Legion is an international service society that has two requirements for membership: be at least 18 years old, and prove you own at least one cinema-grade costume of a Star Wars villain … which you had to build yourself, because they’re not for sale anywhere. They were accompanied on their journey by members of the Rebel Legion, a similar group who honors the heroes of “Star Wars.” Darth Vader, Princess Leia, and enough Stormtroopers to overrun Mos Eisley are a tough act to be followed by. Kids were running into the middle of the street to get their pictures taken with the Star Wars characters … and some of those “kids” had several kids of their own.
In the midst of all the marching bands and floats, came The Wheelmen. These guys have so much fun. They dress up in 1880s-style suits and ride bicycles … very old bicycles, like velocipedes and penny-farthings.
According to John Parmann, Divaz’ president and co-owner, “Philadelphia is definitely the town of brotherly love. The law enforcement were present in droves, and they demonstrated their enthusiasm for the Divaz all along the parade route … along with the enthusiastic crowds.”
The Divaz dedicated their performance to the memory of Diva Cheryl Hanson, who passed away shortly before Thanksgiving. Julia Parmann, co-owner of the Divaz, related, “she passed away just as we landed in Philadelphia. Right before the televised live feed of our performance, a big gust of wind came up and blew leaves across our feet. That’s when we knew she was there with us.”
Julia also said, “All our anxieties and nervousness melted when the crowds were cheering and singing and thanking us for coming.”
John adds, “all up and down the parade route, the crowds were shouting, ‘thank you Idaho for coming! We love you!’ There were a few children who said to their mothers, ‘mom, you can do that too!’”
Said Julia, “After the parade, visiting the Christmas Village, we were approached by people asking how they can join our fun and enthusiastic group.” She also mentioned, “the crowd seemed to like Holiday better, but everyone liked both songs. We heard from the crowd lots of people yelling ‘you rock it ladies, you rock it!’”
In February, the Divaz will be accepting new members for the 2020 performance season. Anyone interested in joining the group should visit www.blazendivaz.com.