Faith Leaders Gather in Pasadena for 5th Annual Pre-Parade Prayer Walk

Faith leaders from across greater Pasadena convened Saturday, Dec. 27, for the 5th Annual Faith Leaders Unite Prayer & Walk, continuing a tradition of blessing the community and the Rose Parade route on the Saturday before the New Year’s Day parade.

The gathering, organized by the Clergy Community Coalition and the Interdenominational Ministerial Alliance, began with a private breakfast at Maranatha High School before clergy and community members assembled at the Tournament of Roses House. On the East Lawn of the headquarters, representatives of the Gabrieleno (Tongva) Band of Mission Indians delivered a Land Welcome acknowledging the Tongva as the original inhabitants and traditional caretakers of the land.

Clergy members offered prayers and brief remarks — some addressing national and global issues — before marching up South Orange Grove Boulevard. Pasadena Police Department motorcycle officers accompanied the group as they continued to Colorado Boulevard, where participants prayed collectively for safety and unity along the parade route.

This year’s gathering carried particular meaning, occurring nearly one year after the Eaton Fire devastated Altadena and northern Pasadena. The Jan. 7, 2025, blaze caused at least 19 confirmed deaths and destroyed 9,418 structures, including 80 homes in northern Pasadena. The prayer walk offered clergy and community members a moment of collective reflection, unity and hope ahead of the 2026 Rose Parade.

The Rose Parade, scheduled to step off Jan. 1, 2026, will feature the theme “The Magic in Teamwork,” with Earvin “Magic” Johnson serving as Grand Marshal.

Faith Leaders Unite began in 2022 as a collaboration among local clergy, elected officials and Tournament of Roses leaders seeking to create a formal spiritual blessing for the parade and the Pasadena community. The inaugural gathering was held indoors at the Tournament House Rose Room due to rain, and included a Land Welcome by Gabrieleno (Tongva) representatives followed by a procession to Colorado Boulevard. Subsequent annual events in 2023 and 2024 drew more than 100 clergy members, representing over half of Pasadena’s 250 faith communities.

“We are thrilled by the enthusiastic response from Faith Leaders in our community to join together once again. We believe it is our privilege and responsibility to go ahead of this community in celebration of and prayer for the flourishing of all people in Greater Pasadena and beyond,” Pastor Mayra Macedo-Nolan, executive director of the Clergy Community Coalition, said at last year’s march.