Ellsworth wins community spirit award

  • Published
  • By Tech. Sgt. Nathan Gallahan
  • 28th Bomb Wing Public Affairs
ELLSWORTH AFB, S.D. --  A B-1B Lancer wrapped in 10,000 lights delighted thousands in a parade in Rapid City Nov. 27 and the team responsible was recognized for their efforts.

The B-1 was the main attraction of the Ellsworth AFB float, which participated in the Festival of Lights Parade, a nighttime parade held annually in downtown Rapid City. The team responsible for assembling the float was awarded the Community Spirit award, a first for both the team and the float, in the parade's 13-year history.

The success didn't come easy though, a small team of volunteers worked tirelessly to make sure the float was fully functional and ready to go on event day. The head volunteer was Master Sgt. Mike Brathole, 28th Bomb Wing career assistance advisor. He along with two others spent last week in an unheated building adding more lights and glamour to the float.

"It's been difficult but the people love it," he said. "When I first took the float over three years ago, it was a rusted frame sitting on the ground with no trailer or anything."

From there, he worked with volunteer fabricators, electricians and aerospace ground equipment mechanics to do everything from building a trailer to installing a generator.

"The rebuild took so long we missed the parade [in 2008]," he said.

The float was back and fully functional in 2009, with an overwhelmingly bright B-1B wrapped in more than 10,000 lights, winning the Razzle Dazzle award that year. More than a static aircraft model though, the B-1 banks left and right as it's towed down the street. Instead of dropping bombs, it simulates dropping a Christmas present.

"When you see it at night, with all of the lights on, it's phenomenal," said Marilyn Shelton, 37th Bomb Squadron unit program manager. "The parade is all about bright lights and the crowd goes nuts when they see the Ellsworth float coming."

Mrs. Shelton isn't a simple onlooker though; she's been the float's coordinator for the past 13-years and has helped build many of them. Over the years, the floats have ranged from a big Air Force emblem to a Statue of Liberty.

"For all of my time, it was a lot of hard work," she said. "But, the best part of it was once you got downtown in the parade, people would come up and say great job. Just seeing the crowd's reaction, it made all of that hard work worth it."