The 90th Annual Mardi Gras Parade, organized and sponsored by the Kiwanis of Barstow Crossroads, is an event that transforms a relatively quiet stretch of Barstow's Historic Route 66 into a festive sea of people, lights, and fun in celebration of its residents and neighbors.
The National Training Center, and its units assigned to Fort Irwin, join local Marines in providing Soldiers and equipment to complement the many youth organizations, marching bands, and floats participating in the parade.
"We take great pride in showing up for our neighbors, because they always show up for us when we need them," said Col. Lane A. Bomar, the Fort Irwin Garrison Commander. "This is the third time I've been stationed here; the level of Esprit De Corps in seeing our Soldiers march, sometime with an 'Abrams,' down of Route 66 at night, never gets old."
"Abrams" is a reference to the M-1, the U.S. Army's main battle tank that have participated in previous parades..
The City of Barstow and Fort Irwin are long time partners and routinely support each other through joint infrastructure projects, severe weather crisis, and emergency power outages.
"We train 20 days straight just about every month; it's easy to get tunnel vision so opportunities like this allows us to show our community partners, and the American public, the pride we take in defending them," said Command Sgt. Maj. David D. Palmer, the Fort Irwin Garrison Senior Enlisted Advisor. "Supporting this parade also helps our recruiting mission, we get to engage with thousands of people and each of our Soldiers are competent Army ambassadors with stories story tell."
The parade took place Saturday, October 19th, 2024; tailgating and camping for "a good spot" started in the early afternoon, the parade began at sundown.
Social Sharing