Band To Honor Farmingdale At Macy's Day Parade

FARMINGDALE, NY — The Band Directors Marching Band, a collective of more than 400 musicians from the United States, will be performing at the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade on Thursday. And they will honor Farmingdale while doing so.

Band members will wear Daler Strong pins in remembrance of Gina Pellettiere and Beatrice "Bea" Ferrari, the two Farmingdale educators killed in the Sept. 21 bus crash. Pellettiere, 43, of Massapequa, and Ferrari, 77, of Farmingdale, a retired teacher who chaperoned the school's annual marching band camp trips, were killed when the bus they were on crashed and tumbled down a 50-foot ravine.

They were headed to Greeley, Pennsylvania for the school's yearly band camp. Dozens of students were injured in the crash, some critically. All the students who were critically injured are on the road to recovery.

The entire community mourned the losses of Pellettiere and Ferrari while supporting their families, as well as the students who suffered physical and emotional wounds in the crash.

The Band Directors Marching Band will pay homage to those impacted by the fatal crash.

"Be on the lookout for this remarkable group (they'll be near Snoopy)," the school district wrote.

In a later event, a representative from the Band Directors Marching Band will present Farmingdale with pins and a generous donation, according to the school district.