Macy's Thanksgiving Parade; Greendale marching band to perform

GREENDALE, Wis. - Thanksgiving is almost here and if a tradition of yours is to watch the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, you might see some familiar faces.

The Greendale High School Marching Band is one of six high schools across the nation who will perform in the parade.

"It’s a little terrifying, I'm not going to lie," said sophomore Daniel Knopick, a snare drum player. "[But] I’m very prepared. I feel like I know stuff and I’ve got it all down and ready to go."

Knopick is one of 200 marching band members who will make the trip to New York City.

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"Coming from a little town in Wisconsin to one of the biggest cities in the world, it’s a little shell shock," said Tom Reifenberg, director of bands.

The school applied to partake a year and a half ago. The anticipation is nearly over as they do their final run-throughs this week. 

"We’re going to be going around the track because the parade itself is 2.5 miles," Reifenberg said.

Playing a football game, or performing at the State Marching Band Championships doesn’t quite compare to the size of the audience they’re about to have.

"The crowd is so deep," Reifenberg said. "Like 30-40 people deep at some intersections, it’s remarkable."

Greendale High School Marching Band

After hours of practice and perfecting the formations, the high school band is ready. They head to the Big Apple on Sunday.

"They’ll have these memories that will last a lifetime and they’ll tell these stories forever," assistant band director Liz Parsons said.

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If you want to see the marching band’s performance in person, they are going to be doing that for free at 1 p.m. Saturday at Greendale High School.

The marching band previously performed in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in 2016.