Elaine Ort, band director for Western Wayne High School, will again participate in a special event with the group Saluting America’s Band Directors.
Three hundred and fifty band directors from across the United States, Canada, Mexico, and Panama, including Ort, will again form The Band Directors Marching Band to march in the 2026 Pasadena Tournament of Roses Parade®.
The band’s appearance is a part of the Saluting America’s Band Directors project of the Michael D. Sewell Memorial Foundation, based in Pickerington, Ohio. The band’s participation on January 1 follows its successful appearance in the 2022 Rose Parade and the 2023 Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade . Through its theme, “America’s Band Directors: We teach music. We teach life”, the Saluting America’s Band Directors project aims to spotlight the extraordinary dedication and accomplishments of band directors everywhere. Regardless of where they teach and work—public and private schools, colleges and universities, the military, or community bands—dedicated music educators and leaders work long hours to not only teach and conduct music, but to impart critical life skills. Student lives in particular are positively changed by motivational leaders who teach, inspire and mentor them.
As in 2022, the 2026 Band Directors Marching Band will accompany a float entitled “Banding Together.” The float-band entry is unique to Saluting America’s Band Directors. Crafted by Artistic Entertainment Services, the “Banding Together” float salutes all the students, teachers, and communities who band together to make music happen.
The performance for the 5.5 mile route through Pasadena will be led by nationally-known music educator and innovative band director Jon Waters, director of bands for Bowling Green State University. The parade will be televised to national and international audiences.
As the sponsoring organization behind the project, the Michael D. Sewell Memorial Foundation was created to recognize and carry on the work of the late Mike Sewell, who dedicated his life to schools and community music programs in Pickerington and the Central Ohio area for almost 40 years.
“I am so incredibly excited for this experience, and so grateful to have had such wonderful colleagues and friends who have helped prepare me for this adventure,” Ort said. “ I hope that I will make all of you proud in Pasadena. Go Wildcats, and Go Band!”
Ort, PMEA District 9 vice president, has devoted much of her life to the study and performance of music. A native of New England and graduate of Marywood University, Ort is a member of the Scranton Brass Orchestra, the Providence Brass, the Schützengiggles Oompah Band, the Marywood University Wind Symphony, and performs often in musical pit orchestras throughout the region. As an educator, she
serves as the director of instrumental activities in the Western Wayne School District since 2014. At Western Wayne, her teaching responsibilities include sixth grade brass instruction, eighth grade band instruction, and the Pride of Western Wayne, the Wildcat High School Band. Under her direction and guidance the school continues to invest heavily in its music program, and was named a KHS America Academic Alliance Platinum school for its investment in instrumental education. It is the only school in Pennsylvania, and one of only 39 in the United States to have received that honor.
One of Ort’s most recent honors is being the recipient of the Pennsylvania Music Educators Association District 9 Citation of Excellence. Ort was the only band director in District 9 to be chosen for the award for 2025. This award is given to music educators who demonstrate high musical standards both inside and outside the classroom.
The community can support Ort’s journey to the 2026 Pasadena Tournament of Roses Parade® by donating to Saluting America’s Band Directors to put a rose on the float that will appear with the group during their performance.
You can write a message of encouragement and support for Ort by using the following link
Put a flower on our float in the 2026 Rose Parade to pay tribute to someone special
Donations could be made to the America’s Band Directors organization without including a rose on the float by using the link
https://rose-parade-float-campaign.myshopify.com/products/make-a-contribution-to-the-saluting-americas-band-directors-project
Additional details can be found on the Saluting America’s Band Directors website, Band Director Salute.org.
Don’t forget to tune in to ABC or NBC on Thursday, January 1, to see our very own Mrs. Ort starting at 11 a.m. Pictured is Ort in the uniform she will wear at the 2026 Pasadena Tournament of Roses Parade®
