Bud Bras honored as grand marshal
<p>Grand Marshal Bud Bras drives his Ford Model A down Main Street during the grand parade on Sunday in Hot Springs.</p>
HOT SPRINGS – Horse drawn wagons, fire trucks, police cruisers and vintage automobiles filled the streets of Hot Springs as the Grand Parade closed out the 65th annual Homesteader Days celebration.
The parade kicked off around noon on Sunday, June 15, starting near the high school and ending on Main Street.
At the center of it all, was Lando “Bud” Bras in his Ford Model A.
Bras served as the grand marshal for this year’s parade, in recognition of his deep family roots in the Hot Springs area.
Bras is a third generation homesteader, whose grandparents first came to Sanders County in the early decades of the 20th century.
This year’s grand marshal was also on hand for the first ever Homesteader Days, which was held in the summer of 1949.
This initial event was a huge deal throughout Montana, and the celebration attracted state politicians and national celebrities to the town.
The first celebration was held at Camas Hot Springs Resort and featured appearances by then Governor John W. Bonner and Olympian, pro footballer and multi-sport athlete, Jim Thorpe.
The original celebration also featured a buffalo roast to mark the occasion.
“Another kid and I rode our horses into town and camped out,” Bras said, recalling the debut celebration.
Despite his long history in the area, Bras was still surprised to be given the opportunity to be in the parade as the grand marshal. Bras resides in Lonepine.
“I heard a few things about it, but I didn’t know I was going to be the marshal until I read about it in the paper,” Bras said.
Not only did Bras bring his mint condition Model A to the parade, he also brought a fleet of classic Ford Mustangs with him from Lonepine.
Considering the long history of his family in Lonepine, it is not surprising Bras was selected to lead this year’s parade.
In 1909, his grandparents, Roy and Maude Bras, were made aware of available land in northwestern Montana. The land in question was to soon be opened for general settlement, so the family moved to Kalispell on the immigrant train.
Shortly after this trip, the family came to their current spot in Lonepine via a covered wagon in 1911.
Upon arrival they began to homestead and were soon joined by other members of their family, making their home on the Flathead Reservation.
Bras and his wife Dorothy still live and farm the land in Lonepine, originally settled three generations ago. Land homesteaded by his great-grandfather Reverend Samuel Murray.
Following the conclusion of the parade, Bras was all smiles as his car was loaded onto a trailer for safe transport on the journey back to Lonepine.
Joining the grand marshal in the parade were members of the Hot Spring Police and Fire Departments, and an array of classic automobiles, which had been featured in the car show on Saturday
A number of floats, including some from the LaRue Hot Springs Museum and one representing alumni from the Hot Springs High School’s class of 1954, were also featured in the annual parade.
Per tradition, once the parade reached the end of its route, the vehicles and floats forming the procession took a few minutes to organize themselves, before heading back through town to give onlookers one more look and one last chance to grab sweets being tossed by friendly individuals.