Strapping on their tubas for Monday morning’s band camp session, from left, are Daniel Case, Drew Harper and Ian Pagani. | Clif Knight

Hartselle High School’s marching band has accepted an invitation to march in the ABC Dunkin’ Donuts Thanksgiving Day Parade in Philadelphia, Pa.

“It’s a great honor to be invited to this prestigious event,” said band director Randall Key. “This is something I’ve worked on for the past 10 years.”

Key said Hartselle is one of 21 high schools that will participate in the nationally televised parade.

“We anticipate having about 100 students from grades eight through 12 make the trip,” he stated. “The cost per student is going to run around $750 so we’re going to have to rely on fundraisers to finance the trip.”

A cookie dough sale is the first fundraiser planned. It will begin today, July 23.

The preparation of a musical program for the parade is another challenge band members will face.

“We’ve been asked to preparemusic that is fun, exciting and energetic,” said Key. “We’ll begin rehearsals as soon as we have our halftime show ready to go.”

The itinerary for the trip includes three days of touring and sightseeing – two days in New York City and one day in Philadelphia. The band will return home on Friday following its Thanksgiving Day performance.

“This trip will be a once in a lifetime experience for our band members,” Key pointed out. “They will be exposed to things they’ve never seen before, and it should be noted that what they are going to enjoy was made possible in large part by their predecessors and the success they achieved.”

Hartselle High School’s band is no stranger when it comes to performing in nationally recognized venues. It marched in the Fiesta Flambeau Parade in San Antonio, Texas, in April 2014 and recently received a first place Best Out-of-State Band Award in recognition of its performance.

Other notable past performances include the Walt Disney World Magic Kingdom Parade, New York City Veterans Day Parade in 2006 and 2010 and the Music in the Parks Festival in Cincinnati, Ohio, St. Louis, Mo. and Williamsburg, Va.