Pasadena’s iconic parade is nothing new to Alex Aghajanian.
“My parents would take me around with my sisters and to see all of this, I would walk the parade route and that's 5.5 miles,” the president and chairman of the board of the Pasadena Tournament of Roses told KNX News’ Margaret Carrero. “And my friends and I would start on one side on the east side and walk all the way to Tournament House…look at the floats, and then walk back and then wait for the parade to come.”
Some of his earliest memories are dotted with those famed floats.
“I learned about the parade from when my father would go out in the disbanding area for the equestrians,” he said. “That's where my house was and he would round up the old cowboy western stars and bring them into my living room and I'd hear these stories from them and they had their silver saddles and all of that.”
He hopes that this year’s parade leaves people entertained and that it gives them a sense of renewal.
“That sense of joy that the New Year's starting off and there's hope and we could make anything work,” he said. “And from my standpoint, if I accomplish any of that with anyone, I'll be very, very happy.”
The 135th Rose Parade will be held on January 1, 2024, at 8 a.m.
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