Flowers for the Float: Honoring the Nurses in our lives at the 2013 Tournament of Roses Parade

News Archives

  • The publication Working Nurse Magazine published an article entitled "Nurses: A Cut Above the Rest" and it is all about the Nurses Float. They have given up permission to make this article available for you to read.
  • Live Parade + Healing Plants & Flowers = Nurses Float: The Rose Parade is the only live parade in the world. Everything on the nurses float must be covered with a living "thing". There are exceptions like the skateboarding dog track that required special dispensation from the Tournament of Roses Committee.
    Foxglove plantDid you know that flowers, plants, and seeds have healing properties? The pharmaceutical Digitalis comes from the plant called Foxglove. Bach Flowers are natural remedies. The 38 original flowers are carefully and expertly grown and then processed to create healing flower essence remedies. Many flowers used on our own Nurses Float may have healing powers! What an awesome connection! We have a new nurse volunteer expert, Dr. Martha Libster, on the healing properties of botanicals and plants and she is going to share her knowledge with us. How exciting. We are starting with the Rose.
  • Volunteer Program: The Nurses Float is a large project and we ask seeking high-energy volunteers to help us raise money. You can live anywhere, work anywhere, all we ask is that you make a commitment to raise money for this once-in-a-life-time event in your community. We have made it easy for you by creating a Volunteer Kit all online which can be downloaded and replicated. We would love to hear from you so visit our new Volunteer Fund-Raiser Page and get STARTED. Also you can meet our first volunteer Suzy Richey, RN, ONC, CNOR, CRNFA, from Torrance, California. This was her idea—so join Suzy in supporting this wonderful nurse-focused event.
  • AORN of Reno donates to the float.
  • Quad City Chapter of AORN donates to the float
  • AORN of San Francisco and Marin donate to the float
  • AORN of Omaha Area donates to the Float
  • Chicago Nurses Connect with Nurses Float Project. We are learning the power of this project to connect nurses. A woman named Frances made an online donation and from that we made a connection and learned about the Nurse Parade. And, we thought we were the first to have a Nurses Float on this grand scale. We were wrong! Chicago, Illinois had their very own Nurse Parade from 1949-1958. Learn More.
  • Two Nurses Honored-- A contributor has donated in honor of two nurses who supported her through a difficult health challenge. Find out who those Nurses are.

  • Happy New Year! Did you watch the Tournament of Roses Parade? Sure hope so. What beautiful floats. The Board of Directors had an opportunity to visit two float designers in early December and then again on December 30th. What a difference in how the floats looked in a matter of a few weeks. Most of the decorating was completed and it was thrilling to see so many volunteers working to create these beautiful floats.

    The theme this year was “A Cut above the Rest”! Each float, and there were about 42, was sending a message to the viewers and it was to honor someone, something, or an event that was a cut above the rest. The float in honor of the Tuskegee Airmen was a prefect example. The float honored these special airmen, paying tribute to the military men who served in World War II, letting the world know they are a “cut above the rest.” Another example was the New Life Rises Float which honored the new life that emerges when donors make the gift of life possible. Transplant donors and recipients are a Cut above the Rest.

    Nurses are a Cut above the Rest and are deserving of this level of recognition and appreciation. Let us Honor all Nurses for caring for each patient and making a difference in each life with a beautiful memorable Nurses Float on January 1, 2013.

    It was fascinating to see how the designers—structural and floral—created a float to send the message A Cut above the Rest. Join us by supporting the Nurses Float which will tell everyone watching that Nurses are a cut above the rest too. This will be made possible through your donations. Enjoy a behind the scenes look of the parade by watching our beautiful slide show of the floats getting ready to travel down Colorado Blvd.

  • Thank you cards to write? Purchase a set of notecards, by nurse Kathy Leland.
  • Association of periOperative Nurses Chapters respond to a Chapter Challenge from the AORN of Orange County. See who has risen to the challenge
  • The Board of Directors of the Nurses Float Project send our heartfelt thanks to all nurses thanking you for all you do for patients each and every day. We especially want to thank the nurses, our physician friends, and friends of nurses who have donated. In the year-and-half we have been "officially" fund raising you have helped us raise $20,000.00 bringing us that much closer to the reality of a Nurses Float. Have a wonderful and blessed holiday.

  • New York Nurses State Association becomes first State Nurses Association to donate.  We are so grateful to the NYNSA for their generous contribution to the Nurses Float.  Check out our Sponsor page to see who has donated.

  • Kathy Leland, RN Friendship painting and note cards are popular with our site visitors.  Check out all her paintings at our online store.

  • American Nurses Association communicated information about the Nurses Float in their publication The American Nurse; with an online article at www.nursingworld.org, and to all their affiliate members. We are very grateful to the ANA.

  • Need Your Financial Support:  To make the Nurses Float a reality we need your financial support.  Please make your donation today and we would love a yearly commitment for the next 3 years.  This is a one of a kind event for nurses and our profession and we appreciate your support more than you know.

  • California Association of Nurse Practitioners, Greater Los Angeles Oncology Nursing Society Chapter, and Bryant Pickering Family Trust become sponsors of the Nurses Float
  • Going to a meeting? Getting together with friends? Take the Nurses Float brochure (pdf) with you and encourage people to support the project through their donations.
  • National Association of Hispanic Nurse— Los Angeles Chapter donates $1,400 to the Nurses Float
  • Quarterly Newsletter Starts. This month we will be sending out our first quarterly newsletter to our current and future donors and all volunteers. This will keep you informed about the Nurses Float project. Sign up now to get your issue.
  • Nurses Week May 6-12, 2009. Support the Nurses Float with purchases of Leland Studio art work, affirmation cards, Nurses Float luggage tags, and official Tournament of Roses shirts from 2008.
  • Association of California Nurse Leader’s presents Nurses Float project at their February 7-11th meeting in Monterey, California. Sally Bixby told the 400+ attendees of this conference about the Nurses Float and they opened their hearts and pockets. They raised over $2,400.00 for the Float. Thank you ACNL.
  • California Association of Nurse Practitioners Chapter 17 holds a 50/50 raffle at their February 26, 2009 meeting. Sally Bixby and members of the Bare Root Board of Directors spend an evening with these awesome nurses. Thank you CANP!
  • Operating Room Nursing Council of California starts AORN Chapter Challenge. There are 29 Chapter in California and the Orange County Chapter was the first to donate to the Float and they have issued a challenge to the others to match or top their $500.00 donation
  • Nurses Float Now On Facebook. Visit the Nurses Float Wall at www.facebook.com. YouTube you are next!
  • CCI News Personal Commitment to Extraordinary Care Spring 2009. The Competency & Credentialing Institute publishes an article on Sally Bixby and the Nurses Float in their Spring 2009 Newsletter. You can read the article here.
  • Nurse Kathy Leland who is also an artist has generously donated signed prints of her paintings to the Nurse Float. When she heard about the Nurses Float she contacted us immediately to make this generous offer. With every purchased print, the Nurse Float gets 50% of the profits. We are so grateful to Kathy Leland. Visit our online store today and get your gifts for Nurses Week and Mother’s Day coming May 2009.
  • Association of California Nurse Leaders becomes a Patron of the Nurses Float
  • Association of Operating Room Nurses (AORN) of Orange County Chapter 0510 becomes first AORN Chapter official Sponsor of the Nurses Float
  • California Nursing Students Association becomes a Patron of the Nurses Float
  • CCI: Competency & Credentialing Institute Becomes a Sponsor
  • Nurses Float covered in an article at Nursezone.com
  • " Roses for Nurses" published in the November 3, 2008 issue of NurseWeek tells their readers about the Nurses Float.  Read the article.
  • Holland Hospital in Michigan becomes sponsor of Nurses Float
  • 3rd Row Designs sponsors Nurses Float
  • Monica Weisbrich & Associates sponsors Nurses Float
  • Elder Support Services sponsors Nurses Float
  • Pat Spongberg sponsors Nurses Float
  • OR Manager Becomes 1st Patron
  • Alpha Consulting Become 1st Sponsor
  • Sally attends Operating Room Nursing Council of California meeting. View photos in our Gallery.
  • Sally attends California Student Nurses Convention. View photos in our Gallery.
  • F4TF Goes to D.C.for Managing Today's O.R. Suite. View photos in our Gallery.