Blind Marching Band to Participate in Rose Parade
The band has 35 members, as well as several volunteer sighted marching assistants.
The only blind marching band in the country—and possibly the world—wants to show the world that their talents have no limits.
And soon, they will have their chance. The Ohio State School for the Blind has been invited to show off their skills at one of the most prestigious marching events in America: the 2010 Rose Parade in Pasadena, California.
While the 35 members of the band say they have little problem learning their music, music director Carol Agler told WCMH-TV it took longer to show them how to march in position and move their feet properly.
The band enlists the help of sighted marching assistants who walk next to the musicians to ensure they don't veer off-course.
Agler explained that she wants to silence all of the critical voices that doubt whether blind kids can succeed as a marching band. "That's what I'm hoping to change," she said.
Band co-director Dan Kelly told CBS news that the band succeeds through hard work and by thinking positive.
"If you think you have a limitation, chances are you're going to have one," he added.
The 121st Rose Parade will be held on January 1, 2010 at 8:00 a.m. PST.
Sarah Beldo is a journalist in San Francisco
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