GIRARD — Members of Girard High School’s marching band will perform Saturday at Chicago’s annual St. Patrick’s Day parade.

The band was among several nationwide selected to perform in the parade that travels through downtown Chicago.

Band Director Julia Semple and Assistant Band Director Carey Bookhart and 45 band members in grades 8 to 12 will leave Thursday for the trip and will be in Chicago through Sunday.

Semple, who is a 2018 Girard High School graduate, said a video of the band performing in December at the Youngstown holiday parade was submitted to the Chicago parade committee and the band was selected.

“We submitted a video of the band performing and they liked the band,” she said.

Semple said this is the first time she and most of the students have been to Chicago.

“The kids are really excited and have been practicing. The parade will be the first thing we do on Saturday,” she said.

Semple said the parade route will travel by the Chicago River and then throughout the downtown area.

She said the band will continually play four different songs as they travel on the parade route,

including “Hang on Sloopy,” “The Long Train” by the Doobie Brothers, the Girard fight song and the “Hey” song by Gary Glitter.

Semple said band director D.J. Colella, who is off this year, is the one who organized the trip. The band boosters helped raise funds for the four-day trip.

In addition to being in the parade, band members will tour the city and visit Griffin Museum of Science and Industry, Shedd’s Aquarium, the Lincoln Zoo, water tower, Medieval Times and Notre Dame College.

“We have plans to see many places in Chicago. We will have a dinner cruise and go to Notre Dame College,” Semple said.

One of the most famous St. Patrick’s Day traditions in Chicago is the dyeing of the Chicago River green.

Semple said the parade will be aired on national television.