CLOVIS, Calif. (KFSN) — The Clovis High School Band is heading to Pasadena.
They were selected as one of five high schools to take part in the 2027 Rose Parade.
Day in and day out, the Clovis High band works to ensure it can put on a great show.
They’re led by Instrumental Music Program Director Esmeralda Rocha Lozano.
On her office wall, right next to where students practice, are monumental moments the band had prior to her arrival.
That includes performing in the Rose Parade. It was that picture that sparked a dream.
“1986 is the last time the band went to the Rose Parade, and I thought, how awesome if we could do a 40th anniversary, and my goal would be 2026?” Rocha Lozano said.
So in 2020, she quietly started applying in hopes of the band making a Rose Parade return.
Year after year, she would get further in the process, but was always rejected.
The last time she applied, she tried something new and included band members in the video application.
Then, this August, she got the call.
“They just said, ‘Well, we have a big question to ask you.’ You know, ‘Will you, you know, be honored to march in the 2027 Rose Parade?’ And then, you know, of course, I started to cry.” Rocha Lozano said.
Clovis High was one of five high school bands selected.
Once it was official, it was time to tell the students, but Rocha Lozano wanted to find the perfect moment.
She kept it to herself for months. Then, during a home football game in October, the special announcement was made on the big screen, right as the band finished performing.
The students – still on the field – had various reactions.
“I was just like, surprised we actually made it, you know, like something that big,” Freshman Adam Ramirez said.
“We were like, we were just all so excited. I remember looking around and seeing people like, shocked. Some people were like, jumping around and screaming and stuff,” Junior Kendra Sharpe said.
The band has about a year to prepare ahead of the 2027 Rose Parade, 41 years since Clovis High was last there.
Seniors who graduate in the spring will be invited to return and take part.
Rocha Lozano has no doubt the band is going to stand out.
“These band members have a grit and a tenacity to them that they will do anything to make sure that Clovis High, the City of Clovis and the Central Valley are so well represented,” Lozano said.
The group will be working on fundraising for the next year to ensure every student has the opportunity to go.
The cost will be about $1,500 per student.
You can make a donation to support their trip by clicking here.
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