GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — Members of the Jenison High School Marching Band will perform Saturday at a celebration as they get ready to leave to participate in the famous Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.

The community is invited to the high school stadium at 3 p.m. Saturday to hear the band play the tunes they’ll perform while marching in the parade and a see a sneak preview of what the TV performance might look like.

“We’ll also talk a little bit and just thank the community for their support, because that has been tremendous and that’s a big part of how we’re able to get to New York,” band director Dave Zamborsky said.

Jenison received the invitation from Macy’s to perform in the parade in early 2022, and has been preparing every day since for a nationally televised performance that will last one minute, 15 seconds.

The band will leave Sunday at 5 p.m. on six tour buses for an about 14-hour trip to New York City. There, the students will get to see the Statue of Liberty, a Broadway show and Central Park, among other attractions. They will also spend several hours rehearsing for the parade.

Zamborsky called the invitation a culmination of work.

“This is due to lots of years of students in the Jenison Band program working really hard and achieving great success, and I think that very short snippet of one minute and 15 seconds, hopefully, will encapsulate all that hard work and all that success,” he said.

News 8’s Teresa Weakley will join the band to report on the trip to New York. Follow along with the journey at her live blog here on woodtv.com.