There’s no place like homecoming

By Natalie Tupta
Charleston Catholic High School

The word homecoming literally means a return home. At colleges and universities, it’s an opportunity for alumni to return and celebrate their school. What does homecoming mean in high school, though?

“It’s a way for the whole school to get together and show their school spirit,” said Charleston Catholic sophomore Tony Majestro.

“It’s a celebration of who we are as a school community,” said Charleston Catholic principal Debra Sullivan. “Homecoming is an attitude, not an event.”

Sullivan emphasized the role the community plays not only during homecoming week but throughout the rest of the year as well. “Charleston Catholic really celebrates homecoming every day,” she said, noting that she regularly receives letters and visits from alumni who remain active participants in the school community.

To academic advisor Simone Thomas, homecoming is “an opportunity for current students and alumni to come together for a reunion.”

Thomas’ favorite part of homecoming week is seeing former students and their families and hearing about the students’ new lives at college. This is special for her because as the school’s academic advisor, she has helped these students decide which college to attend.

There are many homecoming traditions at Charleston Catholic. Among them is Monday morning door decorating. This is where students and their homeroom teachers create a door decoration that reflects the homecoming theme, the class’ subject matter and homecoming game spirit. The doors are judged, and the winning homeroom receives a treat as well as spirit points.

“It’s so unorganized, which makes it fun,” said sophomore Matt Goolsby. “And the door is either really good so you like it or so ridiculously bad that you like it.”

Then there are the dress up days. This year, Charleston Catholic’s theme was “CCHS Travels the Globe.” Each class was assigned a continent, and on Theme Day, students dressed up as a person or thing from that continent.

Goolsby liked this day because the sophomore class was assigned Australia. “Steve Irwin had just died a week before, so it was nice to honor him. And hey, who doesn’t love the Aussies?”

Students also enjoyed Twin Day, when they got to dress exactly like their friend (or friends). “Me and my friend were Mountaineer maniacs, and it was just really fun,” said freshman Christina Criniti.

Friday’s day - Spirit Day - was also a favorite among the students. “My favorite day is Spirit Day because you can wear anything green or white and just have fun with it,” said Goolsby.

Other traditions include class spirit points, which are tallied throughout the week based upon student participation; Homecoming T-shirt Day; class banners; homecoming court and, of course, the homecoming game itself.

Perhaps one of the most famous and unique traditions at Charleston Catholic is “The Couch,” which is a couch that is transported to the soccer field for the game. Students purchase raffle tickets in order to win the privilege of sitting on the couch, which is placed on the sidelines, with a few of their friends during the game. They also win pizza and soft drinks.

“Students will be able to look back and remember sitting on ‘The Couch,’” Thomas said of this, one of her favorite homecoming traditions.

Another big tradition is the homecoming dance, which provides a memorable conclusion to game day. This is Majestro’s favorite part of homecoming week because it means “getting to be with my friends and having fun.”

“Going to dinner with your friends before [the dance] is great,” added Goolsby. “And seeing the ladies nice and dressed up is always a plus.”