Homer the Brave

JOHNS CREEK, GA—Baseball season is months away, but the Atlanta Braves will bring a little bit of Turner Field to Johns Creek when the franchise’s entertainment team takes part in Johns Creek’s Founders Day Parade on Dec. 5.

The team’s official mascot, “Homer the Brave,” known for his antics and charm with fans of all ages, heads up the group. Homer has been a staple of the Braves game-day entertainment.  He will be joined by the “Tomahawk Team,” which provides a little southern hospitality to all the guests who enter the ballpark.

Setting the tempo for the Braves group’s appearance will be the “Heavy Hitters,” one of the most electrifying, exciting drumlines in the Southeast.

The Braves entourage appearance, sponsored by Ciba Vision, is the newest addition to the 2009 Johns Creek Founders Day Parade.

Since its creation in December 2007, the parade has grown to include more than 100 units and several thousand participants. Founders Day itself has expanded from a one-day event to a weeklong celebration of the city’s Dec. 1, 2006 incorporation.

The parade steps off at 10 a.m. and travels State Bridge Road from West Morton Road, ending at Ocee Elementary School at Kimball Bridge Road. Emmy Award-winning news anchor and Johns Creek resident Karyn Greer from WXIA 11Alive News will once again serve as emcee.

Headlining this year’s celebration is the orange-and-white #20 Home Depot Toyota Camary, which has been tearing up the NASCAR circuit.  The 2009 orange-and-white NASCAR Sprint Cup Toyota Camry will rumble its way along the 1.3-mile parade route down State Bridge Road, then on to Newtown Park where it will be on display as part of the “Santa at Newtown” festivities. Visitors can check out the car up close, take photos and purchase souvenirs from the Home Depot Racing merchandise trailer.

The car is part of the Joe Gibbs Racing Team, owned by the legendary former Super Bowl-winning coach of the NFL Washington Redskins, and driven by former Johns Creek resident Joey Logano, who lived here briefly in the late ’90s and early 2000s.

The 18-year-old has set the NASCAR world on fire in his inaugural season and is currently ranked 19th in the Sprint-Cup Driver standings and 14th in the Nationwide rankings. Logano unfortunately is not able to attend the parade, as he will be at the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Awards Ceremony in Las Vegas, where he is the heavy favorite to take Rookie of the Year honors.

The Albany Marine Corps Band will lead five musical marching units in the holiday-themed event celebrating Johns Creek’s founding.  The band is one of only 12 bands throughout the Corps. Stationed at the Marine Corps Logistic Command in Albany, Ga., this band of 50 Marines travels throughout the United States and internationally to fulfill its mission as the Marine Corps’ musical ambassadors.

The band provides music for military ceremonies, community celebrations, recruiting programs and official events. In 2009, they traveled more than 20,000 miles to perform in over 100 locations such as New York City at the Statue of Liberty and a Yankees game, Essex Junction, Vt., Springfield, Mass., and at New Orleans for Mardi Gras. The Albany Marine Band performed for more than 300,000 people nationwide.

With music as their primary mission, all Marine musicians in the band are selected by audition and must maintain a high level of instrumental proficiency. Additionally, with the Marine Corps tradition of “every Marine a rifleman,” all Marines in the band are fully trained to fulfill their secondary mission of bearing arms in the defense of our nation.

The band’s appearance is being sponsored by iXP Corp., the Cranbery, N.J.-based firm that operates the joint 911 Emergency Communications Center for Johns Creek and Sandy Springs. Joining the Albany Marine Band will be the marching bands from Centennial, Chattahoochee, Johns Creek and Northview high schools.

The day concludes with Santa at Newtown Park from 1 to 3 p.m., where children can visit with Old Saint Nick and pose for pictures (so parents, be sure to bring your cameras). Kids of all ages can check out the NASCAR racer and purchase souvenirs from the Home Depot Racing Team. There will be plenty of other kids’ activities, more live entertainment and food available for purchase.

The schedule of Founders Day events begins with the lighting of holiday decorations at City Hall on Monday Nov. 30. From there events include holiday book readings by the Mayor and City Council members, a children’s holiday decoration-making event at Johns Creek Arts Center, a combined holiday card signing for the troops and Toys for Tots drive at City Hall, and a “holiday workshop” hosted by Emory Johns Creek Hospital.