PARKLAND, Fla. – The Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School students from Parkland made Florida proud during the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York City.
After countless hours of practice, the resilient public school’s Eagle Regiment marching band performed their rendition of the holiday classic “The Polar Express” in Manhattan.
Steve Rivero, the band’s director, said the memory of 14-year-old Alex Schachter, a former band member and one of the 17 victims of the 2018 shooting at the school, lives on.
Schachter’s family and the family of Gina Montalto, another 14-year-old student killed on Feb. 14, 2018, helped to support the band.
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Gina loved to dance and she was a member of the school’s color guard. Rivero said the names of Alex and Gina were on the flag at the parade.
A group of 32 dancers from the Maria Verdeja School of the Arts in Miami-Dade County also performed at the parade.
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Top photos of the parade’s balloons
The Leo balloon floats by along Central Park West during the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade, Thursday, Nov. 23, 2023, in New York. (AP Photo/Jeenah Moon)The handlers guide the Paw Patrol balloon along Central Park West during the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade, Thursday, Nov. 23, 2023, in New York. (AP Photo/Jeenah Moon)Handlers guide the Pikachu and Eevee balloon along Central Park West during the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade, Thursday, Nov. 23, 2023, in New York. (AP Photo/Jeenah Moon)Kung Fu Panda’s Po balloon floats along Central Park West during the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade, Thursday, Nov. 23, 2023, in New York. (AP Photo/Jeenah Moon)Kung Fu Panda’s Po balloon floats along Central Park West during the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade, Thursday, Nov. 23, 2023, in New York. (AP Photo/Jeenah Moon)FILE – The Astronaut Snoopy balloon is on Central Park West in New York City during Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade on Thursday, Nov. 24, 2022. Beloved characters like Snoopy and SpongeBob SquarePants will take to the skies above New York City Thursday, Nov. 23, 2023, while bands march along the streets below as the annual Macys Thanksgiving Day Parade ushers in the holiday season. (AP Photo/Ted Shaffrey, File) (Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)The Beagle Scout Snoopy balloon sits poised for the start of the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade near the New York Historical Society Museum, Thursday, Nov. 23, 2023, in New York. (AP Photo/Jeenah Moon)
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