Homecoming 2024 has come to an end. I’m not going to lie, I’m always a little bit excited to see it close out. Even though I enjoy many of the great activities and all of the fun the students get to have, my nerves are on a little bit more of an edge. You see the fun activities and everything we do, always comes with just a little extra energy. Teenage energy. This week, the building is like every student, and sometimes every teacher, drank an energy drink before they come to school each day and are focused on, well, anything but education. But I must say I am always so impressed with our staff and all everybody does to make sure these things go off without a hitch, so the kids have a great week of memories to enjoy. The week-long activities has lots of volunteer hours and, of course, great memories filling up the kids cell phones.
Homecoming Week would not be possible without the most amazing Carrie Wcislek. She is our resident expert on homecoming. She coordinates everything, sets everything up and makes sure you don’t see or notice any of the behind the scenes. She is amazing at what she does and has been doing it for many years, and I hope she does it for many more. From coordinating the activities, making the signs, parade, voting and halftime show, she absolutely does an amazing job. Along with Wcislek, I must say, none of this would be possible without the entire staff. I thank the entire Springfield staff for their passion to create these activities for kids. Whether you were the person taking tickets or handing out cookies at the dance, reffing the powder puff game, supervising a bathroom or a myriad of all the other different possibilities, there is no way these events could take place without the generosity and time shared by the SHS staff.
But, of course, I’d be remiss if I didn’t talk about the kids. One of the things I think we do the best, is we ask our students to practice some common sense skills for the future. In order to be selected as homecoming royalty, our seniors must give a speech to the student body. I was so impressed with this year’s speeches. Our seniors did a great job and treated it as professionals sharing great thoughts, and as you can imagine, speaking in front of everybody is very difficult. Not to be left out, our student body did a great job as audience members. I heard kids talking about the speeches and what the overall effect was. Whether it was a speech talking to the young people about “enjoy every moment,” or overcoming personal struggles or simply one of the seniors reminding students to just be positive with each other. I’m always so impressed with each of the speeches and how that works out for our kids to make a selection for homecoming royalty.
Again, thank you to everybody who had a hand in this year’s homecoming. There is a tremendous amount of work and a lot of thankless hours by so many on our staff, and yes, so many struggles for you parents too. Whether it be providing the clothing, the car or just dealing with the stress of sending a teenager out on a date, you as parents did a great job as well. But like me, I’m sure you’re probably happy homecoming 2024 has come to an end.
Homecoming Royalty Speeches
Our seniors all did an amazing job this year with their speeches. I wanted to at least share the homecoming royalty winners.
Jamir Daniels: I want to tell you two things, my high school experience and how to leave a positive impact. I’ve been a Springfield student for seven years and loved every moment of it. The ups, and downs, and the weird couples kissing in the hallways. It was a wild journey and to think I’m gonna graduate a few months from now is crazy, but I’ve come to accept I have to take the higher step in life and become an adult. Now let’s talk about how to leave a positive impact. I’m pretty sure you guys know my character tries to make someone laugh and be an enjoyable an overall fun person to be around, but let’s talk about something that always gets pushed to the side, which is being positive. To me it’s so important to have a positive supporting cast around you to get through the toughest, but also the highest parts of your life. It’s such a misconception that being positive makes you weird or different from everyone else, which isn’t a bad thing, but it needs to change. So I want you to look at the person next to you and say “How are you” or “How’s your day.” That little step that you did could create a bigger difference than you may think. I will always continue to push a positive message throughout the school until I graduate; and for the freshmen, please enjoy this time, because it truly does go by so fast then you realize. I want to give one last thank you to the amazing teachers we have at this school. Without some of them, I don’t know if I would have considered doing this, and one last thank you to the other senior candidates we have on stage today. They are all great representation of what Springfield means. Thank you.
Bekah Vercellotti: Hi everyone, my name is Bekah, and I am very grateful to be standing on this stage in front of all of you today, even if it’s not for a musical. This year’s homecoming court is full of such talented, amazing people and I am honored to stand by them to represent the senior class, which is so crazy to say.
Looking back, there is not a time that I don’t remember the halls of Springfield. I’ve been in this district my whole life but my first time stepping foot in the high school was when I was in first grade and able to audition for The Little Mermaid, where I ended up taking the stage for the very first time as a fish. Ever since then, my love for performing has only grown and I have been able to be in six Springfield musicals, three of them being before my freshman year. On top of being in musicals early on, my two older brothers were both in the band. Because of their involvement, I was given the opportunity at nine years old to help carry around the drum major stands that I have now gotten to stand on for the last two years. I learned the ins and outs of SHS before I was even a student here, and I truly believe that that’s the reason I have been able to make it to senior year.
I wasn’t scared when high school started because I knew this is where I belong, this place is the reason I am who I am today no matter how much I would like to deny it. Every year spent here has been filled with different friend groups and people who have my back, but some stayed the same throughout the years. I’ve found that being in a place you love, doing what you love, with people that you love makes school 10 times more enjoyable. I’ve also come to realize that I have never been in a class where I don’t know anyone, I’ve always had at least one or two people in each class that I feel comfortable talking to and working with. Aside from just my peers I have made so many connections with the teachers in my life.
To name a few, Mr. Pennell, Mrs. Saunders, Mrs. Hoskins, and Ms. Neal have taught me that there is more to life than just the curriculum in a syllabus. I have found comfort coming to school on the hard days, knowing that there are safe spaces for me to go to, and I thank them for that.
I am proud to call myself a blue devil, because here is where I have found the people who help me feel seen and known even as we walk the halls filled with hundreds of students. I’ve learned the true value of being a respectful and responsible student while also developing a sense of integrity and community.
Thank you to everyone that has been a part of my high school experience and may I just say it’s been nice to talk into a mic that isn’t connected to my face. Go Blue Devils!
