"You could travel all over the country and not find anything like the Mummer's parade; it's Philadelphia as cheesesteaks," Kevin said.
"Someone with the stature of Michael and Kevin outside Philadelphia give us the exposure we needed," Woodland String Band member Tom Loomis said.
With the city unable to contribute past funding and a huge drop in bookings, Loomis explains it's a struggle for the Mummers to pay for the parade. However, the song the Bacon Brothers recorded with the Mummers called 'New Year's Day' is helping. They captured behind the scenes footage on a DVD they're selling to raise money. It's a cause sister Hilda Bacon explains is important to the Bacons and many other families who gather at the parade each year.
"Some of us from Philadelphia take for granted, we think the Mummers parade will always be here, but in this economic climate that's not always the case," Hilda said.
The Brothers will also take the stage for a benefit concert on December 5 at the Electric Factory. The Mummers say they're working hard to collect donations and get the word out and they are adamant the parade won't disappear under their watch.
"We are pure Philadelphia. As Philadelphia as Willie Penn and the Liberty Bell," Loomis said.
At the pre-release Tom says 100 copies of the DVD sold out in under an hour. They're hoping they will be as successful when 5,000 copies of the DVD will be available in a few weeks.
