The first Monday of October dawned with a sea of red, white, and blue at Hanover High School. Everywhere you looked, there were flags, bandanas, and a colorful array of t-shirts to celebrate America Pride Day. Thus, Spirit Week had arrived.
Each year, Spirit Week is organized by the Student Council to rally pride in our school. Students dress up according to themes chosen for each day of the week, each class decorates a hallway, and the whole school comes together for a Friday afternoon pep rally. The week culminates in the Homecoming football game and dance.
While red, white, and blue were everywhere Monday, the colors black and green dominated for Camo Day on Tuesday. For Wednesday, it was neon, scrunchies, and Converse galore as students celebrated Decade Day. One could say it was a blast from the past. On Thursday, sweatpants and comfy clothes were popular choices for Pajama Day. Who wouldn’t want to come to school all comfy in their pajamas?
The class pods were also decorated for Thursday. The Freshmen chose “Fluorescent Freshmen,” hanging bright neon colors and streamers and writing every member of the class’ name on the
whiteboard. The Sophomores went with “Sub-Zero Sophomores,” decorating with Christmas lights, wrapping paper, and a giant inflatable snow globe. It was a winter wonderland! The Juniors’ theme was “Jackpot Juniors” and it was money, money, money everywhere! They were loaded! Finally, the Seniors decorated as “Shipwrecked Seniors,” and entering the pod felt like walking into a pirate ship. There was rope and treasure maps, and a giant ship made out of cardboard. It felt like the set of Pirates of the Caribbean!
Finally on Friday, the colors yellow (Freshmen), white (Sophomores), black (Juniors), and blue (Seniors) were the only ones to be found at HHS. Students were ready to show their pride not only for their school but for their grade. Spirit Week ended on a high note with the afternoon pep rally. When the classes filled the gym, the band played “Victors” and the Seniors rushed in. The cheerleaders performed a brand new routine, keeping the crowd entertained, and then students participated in a series of games that kept the crowd on its feet.
At Friday night’s Homecoming game, the Seniors from the football team, cheerleading squad and the band were recognized for their hard work. They received thunderous applause from the stands. During halftime, the cheerleaders performed a routine to Nicki Minaj’s Super Bass. They had an incredible performance and built up the energy in the stands. After the cheerleaders, the band took the field for its show, Journeys. Led by drum majors Justy Carney and Kyle Knight, the band gave a stellar performance with songs such as Country Roads, Don’t Stop Believing, The Road Home, Homeward Bound, and Life is a Highway. As part of halftime festivities, seniors Cole Sweeney and Kathryn Fallon were crowned Homecoming King and Queen. Despite the great energy in the stadium, and a strong effort by the players, the football team was unable to beat Scituate and earned its first loss of the season.
To round out the festivities, students came together for the Homecoming dance Saturday night. As students filled the gym and danced the night away, there was so much energy in the room, it was exhilarating! There was food, fun, music, dancing, and laughter. How could one not be excited?
For freshmen like me, celebrating Spirit Week for the first time, this was one we’ll never forget. Mary Longueil enjoyed Decade Day the most, while Lauren Casey felt that wearing pajamas to school was a highlight of the week. Whatever their favorite part of the week, students agreed that it was awesome to see everyone get involved and get excited.
The Hawk 