Lance Tibbet Elected President of Tournament of Roses, Theme for 2018 Parade Announced

Thursday evening, the Pasadena Tournament of Roses Board of Directors confirmed Lance Tibbet as President for the 2017-2018 Tournament of Roses year.

Tibbet will provide leadership for the 129th Rose Parade presented by Honda and the College Football Semifinal at the Rose Bowl Game presented by Northwestern Mutual on Monday, January 1, 2018.

Tibbet announced “Making a Difference” as the Pasadena Tournament of Roses theme to encourage creativity in float entries, marching bands and equestrian participants. “The 2018 theme, ‘Making a Difference,’ is a way to honor and celebrate all of the people in our communities, who quietly and without desire for reward or recognition, act in selfless, generous and kind ways to aid or benefit others.” shared Tibbet. “It’s about the human acts of kindness that enrich the lives of others and are the source of inspiration, hope, joy and optimism for all of us.”

Tibbet has been a volunteer member of the Pasadena Tournament of Roses since 1980. He was appointed a Committee Chair in 2001, a Director in 2004 and was elected to the Executive Committee in 2010.

Tibbet has shown his commitment to volunteering serving as Chair on various committees including Budget and Finance, Governance and Personnel, Equestrian, Kickoff Events/Hall of Fame, Parade Operations, Post Parade and Queen & Court. He also served on the Pasadena Tournament of Roses Foundation as chair of its Audit Committee.

Professionally, Tibbet is a partner and vice president of operations at Magic Growers Inc., a wholesale nursery located in Pasadena specializing in growing “California Appropriate” flowering Mediterranean and perennial plants for the retail nursery and landscape trades. In addition to his many years of service in the Tournament of Roses, Tibbet is a current member of the Pasadena Optimist Club, and a board member of the San Gabriel Valley Chapter of NOBLE, and the USS Pasadena (SSN 752) Foundation. He has also served as president of the Pasadena Optimist Club, and president and board member of the Nursery Growers Association of California (NGA). Tibbet served on the NGA’s Water Issues and Political Action committees, was a member of the California Association of Nurserymen and has been active in scouting in Pasadena through a variety of leadership roles at both the Cub and Boy Scout levels.

Tibbet was born in Pasadena, California and graduated from Pasadena High School. He earned a degree in Laser Electro-Optics from Pasadena City College and attended California Polytechnic University at Pomona’s schools of Ornamental Horticulture and Electrical Engineering. He and his wife, Amelia, reside in Pasadena and have two adult sons, Seth, who works in the theming industry creating a visual look or feel for events, displays, films and interactive experiences, and Joel, who is the third generation of the Tibbet family to join the Tournament of Roses, and will be starting his fifth year as a volunteer member. Lance Tibbet follows in the footsteps of his father, Bert M. Tibbet, a retired 24-year Tournament of Roses member.

Mark Leavens – 2025 Tournament of Roses President

In his first order of business, 2018 Tournament of Roses President Lance Tibbet announced the leadership and organizational structure for the 2017-2018 Tournament of Roses. Mark Leavens, a Tournament volunteer since 1995, was elected to the Executive Committee and will serve as the Tournament of Roses President in 2025. He will provide leadership for the 136th Rose Parade® and the 111th Rose Bowl Game® on January 1, 2025.

Mark Leavens was appointed a Tournament of Roses Chair in 2010 and a Director in 2013. He has served on and chaired various committees including Communications & Credentials, Float Entries, Formation Area, Music, Parade Operations and Queen & Court.

Professionally, Mark Leavens has been employed with Nestle USA since 1989 and has held various management roles in Marketing Communications, Promotions, Events, and currently in Shopper Marketing. In addition to his many years of service in the Tournament of Roses, Mark Leavens has coached YMCA basketball and AYSO soccer, Chaired the Nestle United Way Campaign and currently serves on the Board of Directors for Pasadena Optimist Club.

Mark Leavens is a resident of Pasadena. He grew up in Monrovia and attended Damien High School in La Verne. He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from Claremont McKenna College and received his Masters degree in Business Administration from the University of Redlands.

Mark has been married for 29 years to Kay, a Realtor at Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage in San Marino. They have three adult children; Katie, who lives in Pasadena and works at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art in Los Angeles, Ken, who lives in Santa Cruz and works at West Marine headquarters in Watsonville, CA, and Melissa, a junior majoring in Sociology at TCU (Texas Christian University) in Fort Worth, TX.
In addition, the following officers were elected to serve with Mark Leavens on the 14-member Executive Committee: Gerald K. Freeny, executive vice president; Laura Farber, treasurer; Robert B. Miller, secretary. Brad Ratliff, president of the 2017 Tournament of Roses, serves as past president.

Re-elected to the Executive Committee as vice presidents are Amy Wainscott, Alex Aghajanian and Ed Morales. The five appointed at-large members are, Zareh Baghdassarian, Leo Cablayan, Janet Makonda, Ron Rodriguez and Sonja Rojas. Tibbet also announced the election of two new members to the Tournament of Roses board of directors: Jim Ciampa and Steve Perry.

About the Pasadena Tournament of Roses

The Tournament of Roses is a volunteer organization that annually hosts America’s New Year Celebration® with the Rose Parade® presented by Honda, the Rose Bowl Game® presented by Northwestern Mutual and a variety of accompanying events. For more information, visit www.tournamentofroses.com. Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter, Instagram and YouTube and visit our blog at blog.tournamentofroses.com.