Students of Old Rochester Regional High School were surprised by a phone call on Sunday night, February 22. The recorded message said school was canceled for the first day back from February vacation. Due to a compromised roof, both the high school and junior high school were closed on February 23. The winter that just keeps on wintering also led to a snow-related delay on Wednesday, February 25. It happens that this week was also the scheduled date for Winter Spirit Week, and despite the time lost due to rough weather and an unexpected bad break, the festivities went on as planned.
Spirit week was designed to raise school spirit and increase excitement for the basketball team’s Thursday night game against Apponequet. The week kicked off on Tuesday with Pajama Day, which is always a favorite of students, especially those looking for a comfortable start to the week. Wednesday marked Decade Day, a day encouraging students to dress up in clothes from a 1900s decade of their choice. The 1950s ‘Rebel Without a Cause’ and 1960s and ‘70s hippie styles were the most popular, although the majority of students preferred to stay in line with 2015 fashion.
Thursday’s theme was Superhero Day. During the rally, it was easy to spot T-shirts bearing the logos of heroes like Captain America, Superman, and the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. The week concluded on Friday with the most popular spirit day in terms of participation. Students were given the choice of wearing a flannel shirt for ‘Flannel Friday,’ or a piece of clothing to represent school spirit. Students not participating in this event stuck out like sore thumbs, as the hallways looked like a blur of black, white, red, and plaid during passing times.
The winter sports pep rally maintains a distinct feel from the fall sports pep rally. The fall rally’s primary focus is on the class skits, as well as the football game. In contrast, the winter rally pits class against class in a variety of different activities, including the egg toss, a three-legged race, a drawing competition, a donut eating contest, and a quiz show-style competition to see which class has the most knowledge about their school. The junior and senior classes fared well, winning the majority of the events. However, the freshman class, at a disadvantage in some events, put up solid performances in all the events.
To generate excitement, Principal Mike Devoll spoke often about the basketball team’s success this year and also lent support to the other school sports. Devoll’s speech included references to the track team and star hurdler Kevin Saccone, the hockey team’s game against Bishop Stang High School on February 28, and the cheerleaders’ March 1 competition at Whitman-Hanson High School.
One of the other highlights of the rally was a sneak peek of a scene from the upcoming drama production, Sweeney Todd. The play, starring junior Kyle Costa, premieres on April 9 and runs through April 12.
Winter Spirit Week was definitely a success, evidenced by higher-than-usual student body morale throughout the week, student camaraderie at the pep rally, and high turnouts at several recent athletic events.
Check back next week for a preview of the Drama Club’s upcoming presentation and interviews with the stars of the play.
By Patrick Briand
