{"id":402446,"date":"2026-09-17T12:10:11","date_gmt":"2026-09-17T12:10:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/402446\/"},"modified":"2026-09-17T12:10:11","modified_gmt":"2026-09-17T12:10:11","slug":"oakleaf-high-clarinet-player-selected-to-play-in-macys-thanksgiving-day-parade-action-news-jax","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/402446\/","title":{"rendered":"Oakleaf High clarinet player selected to play in Macy\u2019s Thanksgiving Day Parade \u2013 Action News Jax"},"content":{"rendered":"

CLAY COUNTY, Fla. \u2014 Oakleaf High School sophomore Brendan Bowens, 15, has been selected to perform with the Macy\u2019s Great American Marching Band during the 100th Macy\u2019s Thanksgiving Day Parade<\/a> in New York City on Nov. 26.<\/p>\n

Bowens will represent Oakleaf High School and the Clay County community as part of the national parade tradition.<\/p>\n

The Macy\u2019s Great American Marching Band brings together select high school musicians from across the United States. Bowens, a clarinetist, plays with Oakleaf\u2019s Golden Regiment Marching Band and Wind Ensemble under the direction of Kayla Lemak.<\/p>\n

He also studies at the Lakeside School of Music under instructor Kimberly Corzine, where he is also learning to play the oboe. Corzine praised the sophomore\u2019s commitment to his musical development.<\/p>\n

\u201cI am so proud of all the hard work and dedication Brendan has put into his music lessons,\u201d Corzine said. \u201cHe has continued to grow, learn and challenge himself and it has been wonderful to see his progress.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Brendan Bowens Oakleaf High School sophomore Brendan Bowens has been selected to perform with the Macy\u2019s Great American Marching Band during the 100th Macy\u2019s Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York City on Nov. 26, 2026. <\/p>\n

Bowens began playing clarinet five years ago, teaching himself using instructional videos, studying composers and learning to read music independently. Since beginning his musical training, he has earned multiple honors, including third place at the 2025 Clay County Concert on the Green, the Quincy Jones Award for contribution and creativity in music, selection as a featured soloist at the Lakeside School of Music recital in 2025 and selection as a Clay County All-County clarinetist from 2024 through 2026.<\/p>\n

Beyond his musical endeavors, Bowens maintains a 3.5 GPA while taking honors classes. He aims to become the first member of his family to earn a college degree in chemical engineering.<\/p>\n

\u201cMusic allows me to express emotion and connect with others in a meaningful way,\u201d Bowens said. \u201cBeing chosen for this parade is proof that hard work and believing in yourself pays off.\u201d <\/p>\n

Bowens is actively seeking local corporate sponsorships and community donations to cover expenses for travel, lodging, uniform costs and performance materials.<\/p>\n

Community members can contribute through an online GoFundMe campaign<\/a>, while local businesses interested in sponsorship opportunities can contact Fannie Alford Bowens at Fannie Alford Bowens at 516-425-2485 or akapretty08@icloud.com<\/a>. <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Brendan Bowens Oakleaf High School sophomore Brendan Bowens has been selected to perform with the Macy\u2019s Great American Marching Band during the 100th Macy\u2019s Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York City on Nov. 26, 2026. (eyJpdiI6ImFFOExZNHM2czZJaEFCYi9JamFPQmc9PSIsInZhbHVlIjoiRmZGeFIrMERpSVVuSmZ6ZXpRVElTN1lCN01kT1o0NHo5UmZpU0J6TVV6Y0dsSmFISU8vQXIyOVlSbUExd3o5L254bzIybW1uT2gwQ3pNYmlTaDQzZnc9PSIsIm1hYyI6IjAwYmVmZDhjYWRkNGVkZTVhMmEzZmQ3MmQzMjY1MWEzYmRkOGJkMjBlY2Y5MDE3NWI2OTQyOGU2NTMxNGI2MzEiLCJ0YWciOiIifQ==)<\/p>\n

>>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<<<\/a><\/p>\n

[DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks<\/a>]<\/p>\n

[SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter<\/a>] <\/p>\n

Click here<\/a> to download the free Action News Jax news and weather apps, click here<\/a> to download the Action News Jax Now app for your smart TV and click here<\/a> to stream Action News Jax live.<\/p>\n

Action News Jax Top Stories<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"CLAY COUNTY, Fla. \u2014 Oakleaf High School sophomore Brendan Bowens, 15, has been selected to perform with the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":402447,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[116,118,117],"class_list":["post-402446","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-jacksonville","tag-jacksonville","tag-jacksonville-headlines","tag-jacksonville-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/402446","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=402446"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/402446\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/402447"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=402446"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=402446"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=402446"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}