Rose Bowl float honoring copter crash victims, organ donors wins award

The Florida Times-Union

A float memorializing the three men who died in a helicopter crash on their way to pick up a donor heart earned a “Judges’ Special Trophy” at this year’s 123rd Pasadena Rose Bowl parade.

Of the 44 floats, 16 marching bands and 22 equestrian troupes, Tournament of the Roses officials announced 24 winners Monday.

The Donate Life “… One More Day” float won for outstanding showmanship and dramatic impact.

One Legacy, the organ and tissue recovery organization for the Los Angeles area, coordinated the float sponsored by Donate Life America.

The float has hundreds of dedicated roses, each placed in a vial with a personal message.

This year the first vials were dedicated to Mayo Clinic cardiac surgeon Luis Felipe Bonilla, 49, procurement technician David W. Hines, 57, and pilot E. Hoke Smith, 68.

Their helicopter crashed last month in Clay County en route from Jacksonville to Gainesville to retrieve a heart for a Mayo transplant patient.

Read more at Jacksonville.com: http://jacksonville.com/news/metro/2012-01-02/story/rose-bowl-float-honoring-copter-crash-victims-organ-donors-wins-award#ixzz1iRobtf9F