In many cities around America, Homecoming is a massive tradition. In Corry, at least, the city goes all out for the event(s). The week of September 23, 2023, or “Spirit Week,” was the kick off to all Homecoming festivities in the City of Corry.

One of the biggest aspects of the Homecoming tradition is the Homecoming Court. The Homecoming Court consists of six Homecoming King and six Homecoming Queen candidates. Candidates for the court were voted in by the senior class, but all high school students were able to vote for their choice of queen and king after the candidates were determined. This year’s homecoming court was: Markus Lambert and Haeleigh Bayle, Carter Slocum and Willow Bowen, Cooper Slocum and Olivia Jackson, Keiran Graves and Hunter Jordan, Alli Goodwill and Levi Ehrhart, and Baylee Smith and Rylan Smith.

The first activity, or activities, that took place were the Spirit Week “spirit days.” The spirit days were differentiated based on the “theme” of the day, where students were able to participate in the theme by dressing up accordingly all week. Participants were counted day by day and separated by class in an effort to “win” the spirit week category of the pep rally, which was held later in the week. This year, the Corry homecoming Spirit days were: Monday- Surfers vs. Bikers, Tuesday- Human Highlighter , Wednesday- Barbenheimer, Thursday- Orange and Black, and Friday- Color Wars. Going along with the homecoming theme, “Haunted Mansion, “ the class color wars were: Freshman- Brown (Werewolf), Sophomore- Purple (The Boogie Man), Junior- Green (Medusa), Senior- Black (Vampire).

The next Homecoming activity that occurred was the Homecoming Parade on September 28. The Homecoming Parade showcases organizations throughout the city and school district, including businesses, sports, clubs, the Homecoming Court candidates, etc. Most citizens of Corry unite throughout the city to watch the parade and gather candy. The parade began its lineup at CAMHS, made its way all the way through town, and ended at CAPS.

On September 29, the Homecoming Pep Assembly was held during the last two periods of the school day. The purpose of the Pep Assembly is to get Corry students excited and hyped up for the football game that takes place that night. The first thing to happen during the pep assembly was the senior entrance where the seniors performed a foggy fake funeral, mourning Dracula (Hunter LaSalvia). Later in the entrance, Dracula “rose” and “summoned” all seniors to the floor where “Vamp Anthem” by Playboi Carti played and the Seniors did celebratory chants. After the senior entrance, points were tallied for the classes based on their participation in spirit week. The assembly also consisted of performances by the Honors Choir, Band, Cheer leading, and Color Guard. Along with the abundance of games that were played throughout such as: keeping a balloon from hitting the ground without using your hands with a group of people, passing a hula hoop around a circle of students while everyone is holding hands, and the infamous Tug-of-War. Within the duration of the assembly, the homecoming court was formally announced to the student body along with their response to one of the few randomized prompts that they were asked prior to the assembly and football game. To conclude the assembly, the football team shared their own motivational speech to prepare themselves and everyone else for the big game!

Following the Pep Assembly was the Homecoming Football game, beginning at 7 p.m. on September 29. For the Corry Football team, the Homecoming game is one of the most, if not the most, important and exciting games of the season. This year, Corry and Fairveiw went head-to-head at the Homecoming game. Ironically enough, last year Corry and Fairveiw faced each other at Fairview’s homecoming football game, but that did not stop Corry from dominating their team. During halftime, The Homecoming King and Queen were finally crowned during the long awaited coronation. The contestants were escorted down the field by their parents as they were introduced along with their answers to the remaining prompts they were asked to respond to.

With that being said, congratulations Queen Haeleigh Bayle and King Markus Lambert! The football game also featured performances by the cheerleaders, band, and color guard. The Beavers put up a good fight, but the rather ironic resolution to the game could not be ignored. Unfortunately, with the final scores being Corry: 13 to Fairveiw: 31, it is apparent that Fairview sought revenge after last year. Nevertheless though, the Corry Beavers put up a great fight!

Finally, the concluding event of the Homecoming season was the highly anticipated Homecoming dance. All day high school students got ready to sing and dance the night away at the dance in their semi-formal attire. The Homecoming dance took place in the new gym at 7:00 p.m. on September 30. The gym was extravagantly decorated with a tunnel entrance, a pumpkin walk, a candle-lit dance floor, and a spooky photo set up complete with vintage portraits, a static television, a couch and a skeleton! The event was accompanied by a concession stand that was extremely useful, especially since partying creates quite the thirsty environment. The dance ran until 10 p.m., and many would say that it was a hit. The only critique that was given toward the event was that the music was not quite what they were expecting. Overall, though, students recall having a blast.