Print

Email story

Comment

Email editor

'Keeping the spirit alive'

A dedicated group works year-round to pull off the Tampa Bay Veterans Day Parade.

By JACKIE RIPLEY
Published November 10, 2006

Like clockwork it happens.

The American flag unfurls. Motorcycle deputies clear the way. And the streets come to life with the measured cadence of marching bands.

Every year without fail, Town 'N Country opens its streets to a good old-fashioned Veterans Day parade.

"It's a ritual for us," said Gerald Jacobs, one of four veterans responsible for the parade's formation.

A ritual it may be, but it doesn't happen by itself. Rather, the parade is the culmination of a finely drawn strategy that requires commitment of time and attention to detail. It is the brainchild of this small group, which works 10 months of the year to craft it, shape it and perfect it. They must plan for every eventuality, from the precise minute an Air Force refueling tanker will dazzle the crowd to making sure somebody remembers to bring coffee for the VIPs.

"The worst case scenario would be the plane flying over during the singing of the national anthem," said Ray Duran, a member of the Veterans Day Parade Group Inc. "The National Anthem is 10:30; the flyover is 10:35."

MacDill Air Force Base will dispatch a KC-135 tanker right on schedule, a feat that took months to set up and special dispensation from the Pentagon.

The annual parade draws thousands of spectators, and preparation involves a succession of monthly meetings.

Behind the scenes are:

- Parade chairman Brian Boyle, 45, a facilities engineer at Honeywell International Inc.

- Jacobs, 58, a real estate broker.

- Duran, 55, retired from the U.S. Postal Service as a safety specialist.

- E. Rock Roque, 61, one of the parade's founders, also a real estate and insurance broker.

The Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office and the county parks department play major roles, as do sponsors such as Bill Currie Ford, which supplies convertibles for family members of the parade honorees.

There are applications to distribute, letters requesting donations to mail, an honoree to select and an opening ceremony to write, not to mention one of the toughest tasks, figuring out how to get hundreds of high school band members into the staging area without gridlock.

Last year "it turned into a nightmare," said Boyle. A crush of buses dropping off band members arrived at the staging area at the last minute. "We never expected people to cut in line."

Each year parade organizers ask that parade participants be dropped off by 8 a.m. And each year there's a last minute rush at 9:30.

"Shut off the traffic at a certain time," said Sheriff's Cpl. William Hughes during one of the planning meetings. "Put a deputy there at 9:30 and if they're late they're out."

Then there are the logistics. Somebody has to keep track of the number and order of units marching in the parade. Somebody has to assign clean-up behind thousands of paradegoers.

The county government provides the staging area, reviewing stand and portable toilets. "We couldn't survive without parks and rec," Boyle said.

Seeking to keep things on track, Boyle handed out an agenda at the September meeting. "The parade is less than three months away; let's keep up the communication," he said. "We don't want to procrastinate."

Because it can cost nearly $10,000 to put together the parade, money is usually the first order of business.

"We need a list of all those who did not respond to the first request for donations," Duran said. "We'll send them a second letter and also e-mail those who have not yet replied."

Making sure the parade will pay for itself, always a challenge, was almost its undoing five years ago.

"We struggled years ago and didn't know until the last minute if we could even put on a parade," said Roque, recalling 2001. New York Yankees owner George Steinbrenner bailed them out, rallying enough corporate support to get the parade back on track.

Roque, an Air Force veteran, also remembers how he, Ray Fraizer and the late Mark Fogarty founded the parade in 1994.

"We were the three amigos, a most unlikely trio," Roque said. "There was Ray, a minister; me, a regular guy; and Mark, a hard-core leatherneck bull in a china shop who would fight a fight but for the right reasons."

Fogarty, a Vietnam veteran, was a driving force behind the parade, except for the few years he was too ill to participate. This will be the first Veterans Day parade since his death in May.

A wreath will be laid in his honor.

Parade day

Key to the event is the opening ceremony, introduction of the honoree's family, and coordination of everything from who's going to hand out the 1,500 American flags to who escorts the honoree's family members onto the dais.

This year's honoree is Lance Cpl. Kevin Waruinge, who was born in Kenya, then lived with his parents and brothers in Logan Gate. The 22-year-old man was among 14 Marines killed Aug. 3, 2005, by a roadside bomb in western Iraq. His parents and two brothers will be honored guests of the parade.

The parade's grand marshal is Col. Timothy S. Smith, vice commander of the 6th Air Mobility Wing at MacDill Air Force Base. Master of ceremonies is Ron Diaz of 620 WDAE. Tampa Police Detective Sonja Wise will sing the national anthem.

Despite the large numbers of soldiers returning from duty in Iraq, parade organizers have not had an easy time finding participants.

"We have a unit of returning veterans from Iraq, but just one willing to march, " Boyle said. "Just one." That soldier, Geoffrey Hampson, was in the Army, based in Germany and deployed to Iraq.

There have been moments of frustration and moments of levity. At one gathering, Jacobs wore the group's official parade shirt. It was red with small black and white checks on the collar and sleeves.

"You look like you work at Checkers," said Bonnie Palmer of the county parks department.

"That's what my wife said," Jacobs shot back. "But you asked for something that would stick out and there will be lots of red shirts out there."

They have to stick out, because volunteers will need to know where to go if they have questions or need assistance.

And they've got to have business cards.

"It's better, when you're asking for money, to look official and not like somebody just off the street," Jacobs said.

Event insurance is another financial reality.

"The high cost of insurance caused Brooksville to cancel its parade last year," said Roque, who arranged for the $1,464 one-day policy. "And that's doing it for cost without a commission."

And somebody has to round up bottled water, coffee and breakfast for the roughly 20 VIPs expected to arrive early.

"Who can still hustle some doughnuts to us?" Roque wanted to know.

Final arrangements

Once the last float passes the reviewing stand and heads toward the end point at Paula Drive, there typically is another bottleneck. Floats, finally reaching the end of the line, come to a halt as they wait for their counterparts on foot. Then, as later floats bring up the rear, there is a traffic jam of epic proportions.

"They don't want to keep moving, so we can't put someone meek and mild-mannered there" to direct traffic, Jacobs said. "We've got to put someone more aggressive and understanding of what kind of backup that causes."

The Sheriff's Office, on hand for crowd control and potential emergencies, might have a hand in keeping errant floats on the march. It also will bring in trusties to clean up after the parade this year. But even after the last piece of trash has been picked up and the pounding of drums is only a memory, the beat goes on.

"We'll meet to see what went right and what went wrong," Roque said.

It also will be time to show appreciation. In previous years the group sent letters to sponsors thanking them for their contributions. This year they will include a plaque for major sponsors.

But what material to use?

The decisions and responsibilities seem without end. And before the 13th annual parade is history, the 14th annual parade will be in the works. And yet, despite the long hours, occasional frustrations and endless details, they don't expect thanks.

"They're retired military keeping the spirit alive," said Danny Lewis with Bill Currie Ford. "They do it for love of country, for the love of community."

Jackie Ripley can be reached at ripley@sptimes.com or 813269-5308

This year's honoree is Lance Cpl. Kevin Waruinge, a native of Kenya who lived with his parents and brothers in Logan Gate. The 22-year-old was among 14 Marines killed by a roadside bomb in western Iraq in 2005.

Fast facts

If you go

What: 13th annual Tampa Bay Veterans Day Parade

When: Saturday 10 a.m. until about 12:30 p.m.

Where: Hanley Road between Barry Road and Paula Drive

Parade route

- S Armand Drive to Barry Road.

- Barry to Hanley Road.

- Hanley, south to Paula Drive

Extras

- Reviewing stand at Webb Middle School, Hanley Road

- Road closures at 9:30 a.m.

- Carnival at Webb afterward

[Last modified November 9, 2006, 10:26:48]