Recognized by their distinctive white suites, John Grant, founding member of the LMGA, is one of the 945 volunteer members of the Tournament of Roses Parade. John became involved in the Tournament of Roses, “when the University of Redlands put a float in the 2007 parade, I shot a documentary on the float building process from chassis to parade day. In the process, our float liaison whispered in my ear ‘you know you’re tournament material’ and the rest is history.”
Now on his 7th parade, John has already served on four committees, and volunteers for a number of other duties, most notably, VIP tours of the floats being decorated only days before the big event. “It’s a big year for the Tournament. It’s our 125th Parade, the 100th Rose Bowl Game, the 100th Anniversary of the Wrigley Mansion (The Tournament House) and the final BSC Game host.”
John has been a lifelong fan of the Rose Parade. “The work we do is awesome. You can see the results of our labors on New Years Day. It’s pretty cool to work on an event that is televised by seven networks, draws a local crowd of nearly a million people and a worldwide television audience of about 500 million. I really do get a rush out of being part of the grandaddy of all parades and sporting events. It’s always a thrill.”
