MADISON, Ill. (First Alert 4) – A Metro East band director is headed to one of the country’s biggest parade stages.
Bernard Long Jr., the band director at Madison Junior Senior High School in Madison, Illinois, has been selected to march in the 2026 Rose Parade in Pasadena, California. Long said he will fly out Dec. 26 and perform in the 137th Rose Parade on Jan. 1 as part of a national ensemble made up of more than 300 band directors from across the country.
“I’m one of 13 band directors from the state of Illinois that will be participating in this,” he said…