Me and my brother with Super Bowl MVP Nick Foles!

Usually when a person describes an absolutely incredible experience, it’s prefaced with something like, “besides the birth of my children, this was the greatest day of my life!”

Well I don’t have any kids (at least none that I know of), but even if I did, I can’t imagine that watching those little money pits come into the world would somehow top the day that my brother Brian and I just experienced this past Thursday, when, as lifelong Philadelphia Eagles fans, we got to be in the Eagles’ parade up Broad Street to celebrate Philly’s first ever Super Bowl Championship.

Selfie with my brother Brian (on right) from the Art Museum Rocky Steps, where the Philadelphia Eagles had just concluded their Super Bowl Championship ceremony!

When I say my brother and I are lifelong Eagles fans, I realize that our story is not unique, but it is special — and part of what makes it special is that it’s a story shared by millions of people who grew up rooting for the Birds. Some of my earliest childhood memories were watching games on TV with my dad, when Randall Cunningham was dropping dimes to Fred Barnett and Calvin Williams. Or in more recent years, when DeSean Jackson and Michael Vick led the Miracle at the Meadowlands Part II, or when Shady McCoy ran all over the Lions in the incredible Snow Bowl of 2013.

But let’s not sugarcoat things. A big part of the reason that our hearts Bleed Green is because they’ve been ripped to shreds by false prophets like Chip Kelly, or time management by Andy Reid, or utter incompetence by Rich Kotite (I was just a child when the Eagles hired Kotite, and even then I knew the guy was a dolt).

Point is, being an Eagles fan is like having a genetic disorder that always makes you hungover: You root for the Birds because it’s in your DNA, but that pounding headache and feeling of nausea is due to all the drinking you did the night before, either to celebrate an Eagles win or (more often than not) ease the pain of a heartbreaking loss.

With that in mind, part of what made Thursday so incredible was that in one amazing season, this year’s Philadelphia Eagles healed all the heartache suffered by Eagles players, coaches, executives, and fans that had accumulated for nearly six decades. To say this was an improbable season would be a huge understatement. No one thought the Eagles would win a Super Bowl this year, with this team, given all the adversity that they faced. I won’t recount all the underdog stories — Jason Kelce did a pretty good job of driving that point home. But I never, in my wildest dreams, thought that I’d live to see the day when the Philadelphia Eagles paraded up Broad Street to celebrate a Super Bowl victory.

And I surely never thought that my brother and I would be so lucky, fortunate, and blessed to be a part of the parade festivities.

For Brian and me, our wild day on Thursday began with a text that I received from my friend Matt on the Friday before the Super Bowl that read, “Yo Kravitz. Any interest in possibly doing some event work next week should there be a parade? Don’t want to jinx it yet.” My reply: “F**k yeah. And you’re not jinxing it. We’re f**king winning.” Matt’s response: “I like your outlook. I’ll be in touch on Monday.”

A couple things about my buddy Matt: First, his name isn’t actually Matt — I’m not about to out him to the people reading this, because when the Eagles win AGAIN next year, y’all will be blowing up his phone! Second, he’s got a pretty close relationship with the guy whose company was contracted to organize the whole parade, so when Matt asked me about helping out, I knew it was for real. Anyway, back to the story…

I woke up Super Bowl Sunday feeling really weird. In the two weeks leading up to the Super Bowl, I barely slept, because I couldn’t contain my excitement about the prospect of us winning or control my anxiety over the prospect of the unthinkable occurring. However, what was weird on Sunday was that I woke up with this strange calm, and I just had this feeling in my gut that the Eagles were going to win.

That calm quickly turned into excitement in anticipation of a historic night ahead. I felt so strongly that the Eagles would win that I posted a crazy rant about it on Facebook. I then broke every window in my house and ran through a brick wall.

Fast forward several hours later: The phrase Philly Special becomes a part of our vernacular, Nick Foles is a hero, Tom Brady is a sore loser, and I am crying tears of joy as I storm Broad Street with my friends. I can’t believe it: The Philadelphia Eagles are SUPER BOWL CHAMPIONS!

Monday rolled around and I was able to confirm that the events of the previous evening were, in fact, real. In all the excitement, I had totally forgotten about working the parade, but on Monday afternoon Matt called me to confirm my interest. I asked what my role would be, and he explained that he wanted me to ride in the back seat of the police car that would be LEADING THE PARADE CARAVAN. “Uh, yes Matt, I can do that.” It was at that point when I asked him about an extra spot for my brother, but at the time, he couldn’t confirm.

However, on Wednesday I attended a two-hour long orientation meeting with other volunteers, cramped inside a production trailer by the Rocky Steps of the Art Museum. At that point, Matt handed me a walkie talkie and two Parade Staff credentials, one for me and one for Brian. We were instructed to arrive at the Linc at 7:30 a.m., and we were provided a point of contact with the Eagles and with the City of Philadelphia who would get us properly situated in the correct vehicle.

Brian came into the city Wednesday night and stayed at my place in South Philly. We got to the Linc on time Thursday morning, but due to confusion over which car we’d be riding in, we wound up wandering around outside for two hours before we connected with the right police officer, who let us in to the back of his car:

Never in my life did I imagine that I would be riding in the back of a police car, much less so excited to be there. The parade finally began around 11 a.m., and my job was to communicate parade caravan updates via walkie talkie to the team of parade staff at the Art Museum. Brian had no job, other than to take crowd shots with his camera along the parade route.

(If you attended the parade, then there is a decent chance that Brian got a picture of you, so feel free to browse, download, or share the 1,000+ crowd shots that Brian took here, here, and here — they’re in chronological order, and they begin at the stadiums and end at the Art Museum).

The police and parade staff referred to the parade caravan over the radio as “The Package.” I was unable to confirm whether or not said package was named in honor of Doug Pederson and Nick Foles, but I assume that was the case.

Shortly after the parade began, The Package stopped. I heard over police radio that the delay was due to some of the Eagles players exiting the parade buses and interacting with the crowd. I later found out that “interacting” with the crowd included Jason Kelce crowd surfing in his Mummer’s costume! After Thursday, that man is a legend.

So, I did my job and communicated the reason for the delay to the parade staff at the Art Museum. Then, some guy got on the parade radio and asked for my cell phone number. I provided it and shortly thereafter received a text from Chief Werner of the Philadelphia Police, asking me to call him ASAP. Uh-oh…

Chief Werner: “Gregg, please communicate to YOUR STAFF that the players are NOT, under ANY CIRCUMSTANCES to exit the parade buses. If they do this in Center City, then we won’t be able to maintain the barricades, and chaos will ensue. Make it clear that this is a MANDATE!”

Me: “Yes sir. I will pass the message along, sir.”

Also me (but this time just my inner-monologue): MY staff? You’re kidding, right? Hell, the only reason I’m sitting in this car is because Matt and I were in the same bunk together at a now-defunct summer camp when we were five years old!

Anyway, I communicated Chief Werner’s mandate back to the parade staff, who got the message out to the parade bus drivers, who then locked the bus doors. Brian, meanwhile, continued to take great pictures:

We eventually finished the parade route, up Broad Street, around City Hall, and up Ben Franklin Parkway to the Art Museum. Our ride in the lead car had come to an end, and our responsibilities for the day had concluded, too. The police officer let us out at the back of the Art Museum, and Brian turned to me and asked, “What do we do now?”

“Now is when the REAL adventure begins,” I thought. “That is what we do now!”

The Package arrived behind the back of the Art Museum and the players and coaches began deboarding the buses.

I’ve never been much of an autograph collector, but there were two things that I wanted to get signed. First, I rescued a stray dog almost two years ago and named him Carson, about three weeks before the Eagles drafted Wentz. So I asked Carson the MVP if he’d be so kind as to sign a picture of Carson my dog. He obliged:

Second, my two adorable nieces became HUGE Eagles fans during this remarkable season, so I asked a few of the players and Coach Pederson to sign a picture for them. They also obliged:

I have to say that while these keepsakes are certainly special, I was really impressed and amazed by how down-to-earth, genuine, and gracious all the Eagles coaches and players were when interacting with not just me and my brother, but with all the police officers, parade staff, and fans that they encountered. EVERYONE made time for pictures, autographs, etc.

Even Jim Schwartz took a selfie!

Actual interaction from when this picture was taken:

Me (in my most sarcastic tone imaginable): “Coach Schwartz, you strike me as the kind of guy who LOVES taking selfies.”

Jim Schwartz: “Hell no! Not happening.”

Me: “All good, I figured. Thanks so much for all you’ve done! Been waiting my whole life for something like this.”

JS: “You’re welcome. And just kidding man. I’ll take a selfie with you, but I’m gonna keep eating my sandwich.”

Me: “Dude, you’re the man!”

Again, just a really down-to-earth, good guy.

Anyway, after the players got off the buses, Brian and I followed the Eagles and a bunch of VIPs (players’ families, local Philebrities, etc.) inside the Art Museum through the back entrance. Our parade credentials got us in — not one person questioned us. INCREDIBLE. Next thing we knew, all the VIPs were escorted out the front of the Art Museum and down the Rocky Steps to go take their seats for the ceremony.

At that point, Brian and I looked around and realized that we were the only people besides Eagles coaches and players still inside the Art Museum. HOLY CRAP. We snapped a selfie with Nick Foles:

The answer is no, I did not confirm how big it is. But check out Jason Peters with the GREATEST photo bomb of all time!

We also got a selfie with Dougie P:

Once again, just a humble, laid back guy. He’s real. He’s one of us.

Just kidding, DOUG PEDERSON IS SUPERMAN! But when you talk to him, he comes off as Clark Kent.

As cool as it was to get these pictures, we were mindful of the need to give the Eagles the respect that they deserved to enjoy this moment amongst themselves. So Brian and I retreated to a different room nearby.

About 15–20 minutes passed, and then the players were instructed to walk outside in unison and down the Rocky Steps to greet the biggest crowd that I have ever seen in my life. Brian and I walked out shortly thereafter, and we watched the speeches alongside the media, police officers, and other parade staff who were congregated along the sides. We got more incredible pictures, too:

Eagles players walking down the Rocky Steps to greet the crowd!

Jason Kelce delivering his LEGENDARY speech!

After Jason Kelce delivered the most EPIC speech in Philadelphia (world?) history, Brian snapped this photo of Kelce catching his breath:

Shortly thereafter, the ceremony concluded, the fireworks were launched, and post-parade festivities began. Brian and I got some more pictures:

Don’t remember what was so funny, but Malcolm Jenkins is an awesome guy!

Lane Johnson is HUGE.

And then the players boarded the buses, I returned my walkie talkie, and the GREATEST DAY OF OUR LIVES came to an end.

I’ll finish this by simply saying THANK YOU:

To Matt for hooking it all up. You gave Brian and me one of the most incredible experiences of our lives, and we are truly grateful.

To all the police officers, city officials, and parade staff for keeping everyone safe and pulling off an unbelievable event in cold weather with little time to prepare.

And of course, to this year’s Philadelphia Eagles. You guys accomplished something that is extraordinary and so meaningful to so many people, and you did so with humility and class. You represent the very best of this city — our people, our work ethic, and our passion for life.

You’ve made us ALL feel like champions.