Coding Float Sends Unique Message Aimed at Military Veterans

Of the numerous floats at Phoenix Decorating Company in Irwindale quickly counting down the hours until the Rose Parade, one will be offering a unique message aimed at military veterans. 

Coding for Veterans, which originally launched in Canada four years ago and now works with the USC Marshall School of Business, features a float that symbolizes the technology and retraining elements of their program. 

“There’s over 750,000 cybersecurity jobs alone that are going unfilled in the U.S. in the next 12 to 18 months,” said executive director Jeff Musson recently.

The coding program offers an eight-month online course through the USC Marshall School of Business, allowing veterans to prepare for careers in software development and cybersecurity, with starting salaries averaging between $75,000 to $85,000. 

At center stage of the float sits a large animated laptop illustrating coding, software development, and cybersecurity, emphasizing the role of technology in the program, along with a fighter jet that will shoot flares, as well as  a military helicopter with a QR code that allows parade visitors to check out the training site for themselves, as the float rolls by.

As Musson described the laptop’s animated sequence, “It will begin with fighter jets over the Statue of Liberty, and with words overlaid on top of the images, talking about the program itself, and the job opportunities. And then ultimately it concludes with the fighter jet going into the sunrise into the new career.” 

Meanwhile, 18 of the parade’s 40 floats are being decorated at Phoenix in Irwindale, including floats from the City of Alhambra, Shriners’ Children’s Hospital, and Visit Newport Beach. 

Judging began early Sunday morning, in time for the floats to make their “first parade” along city streets from Irwindale to the parade lineup along Orange Grove Boulevard.