Cookeville’s Christmas Parade Committee has selected Tennessee Highway Patrol Lieutenant Adam Cothron as this year’s parade grand marshal.
Cothron critically injured in a July, 2024 shooting during a traffic stop on I-40. Cothron survived his injuries but has faced a long road of recovery over the last year. Parade Committee Member Josh Stites said Cothron was deserving of the honor.
“The intent of this parade is to remember the reason,” Stites said. “And that reason once said that greater love has no one that they would lay down their life for their friends, and Lieutenant Cothron has proven that he was willing to do just that. And so this Christmas we want to give him honor because it is due to him.”
Cothron will lead the parade as the community gathers to celebrate the healing, hope, and peace that Christmas offers. Stites said he hopes people will see Cothron and recognize the dangers that first responders face daily.
“I think as the community recognizes the sacrifice that has been made, not only by him, but he represents hundreds of people in our community of first responders who make the same sacrifice every day,” Stites said. “Maybe to different results at the end of the day, but they make the same sacrifice, and they are willing to make the same sacrifice every day.”
Stites said he hopes being the grand marshal will do just as good for Cothron as it will for the community.
“We hope that this is another reminder to him of how much this community loves him and is a reminder to the whole community how much he is loved and how the community has responded to his tragic circumstance,” Stites said.
Stites said the route will follow the same route as in years past, starting south down Washington Avenue, turning at the square, and ending at the Depot. The 2025 Cookeville Christmas Parade will be on Friday, December 19, at 7pm.