![“[Building nerf blasters] became this outlet of creativity for me that hasn't been matched by anything else. The process [of] making a build complete to your desire is such a painstakingly difficult process, but I've had to learn from [the skills needed from] soldering to proper painting. There's so many different options for everything, if you think about it, it exists. The best part is [that] if it doesn't exist, you can build it yourself," Ishaan Parate said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/DSC_8149-900x604.jpg)
![“When I came into high school, I was ready to be a follower. But DECA was a game changer for me. It helped me overcome my fear of public speaking, and it's played such a major role in who I've become today. To be able to successfully lead a chapter of 150 students, an officer team and be one of the upperclassmen I once really admired is something I'm [really] proud of,” Anvitha Tummala ('21) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/Screen-Shot-2021-07-25-at-9.50.05-AM-900x594.png)
![“I think getting up in the morning and having a sense of purpose [is exciting]. I think without a certain amount of drive, life is kind of obsolete and mundane, and I think having that every single day is what makes each day unique and kind of makes life exciting,” Neymika Jain (12) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/Screen-Shot-2017-06-03-at-4.54.16-PM.png)
![“My slogan is ‘slow feet, don’t eat, and I’m hungry.’ You need to run fast to get where you are–you aren't going to get those championships if you aren't fast,” Angel Cervantes (12) said. “I want to do well in school on my tests and in track and win championships for my team. I live by that, [and] I can do that anywhere: in the classroom or on the field.”](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/DSC5146-900x601.jpg)
![“[Volleyball has] taught me how to fall correctly, and another thing it taught is that you don’t have to be the best at something to be good at it. If you just hit the ball in a smart way, then it still scores points and you’re good at it. You could be a background player and still make a much bigger impact on the team than you would think,” Anya Gert (’20) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/AnnaGert_JinTuan_HoHPhotoEdited-600x900.jpeg)
![“I'm not nearly there yet, but [my confidence has] definitely been getting better since I was pretty shy and timid coming into Harker my freshman year. I know that there's a lot of people that are really confident in what they do, and I really admire them. Everyone's so driven and that has really pushed me to kind of try to find my own place in high school and be more confident,” Alyssa Huang (’20) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/AlyssaHuang_EmilyChen_HoHPhoto-900x749.jpeg)
DECA and Spirit Club host capture the flag game during long lunch
Senior Ryan Fernandez dashes to his side of the field with a ball in his hand while Brandon Mo (10) chases after him to take off one of his flags. Each class competed against each other during long lunch in a game of capture the flag.
November 11, 2015
The upper school DECA chapter and Spirit Club hosted a game of capture the flag where each class competed against each other during long lunch today.
DECA designated the month of November to celebrate the start of competitions. The Harker chapter gives back to the community by hosting a spirit event, capture the flag, to bring the the club and the student body together.
Two teams, each with 15 representatives, compete against each other in a game. Each side had a bucket in the safe zone at the two ends of the playing field that contained 10 balls. The participants had to run to the other color’s side and take the balls back to their own domain, but if a person from the opposing team pulled off one of the flags on their belt, the player must stay in the jail on the side of the arena. The goal of the game is to take as many balls as possible from the opposite side in the allotted time.
The seniors won against the sophomores with a score of 10-0, juniors defeated the freshmen also with a score of 10-0 in the first two rounds of capture the flag.
“In the first game, I think that we were disorganized, but in the second game, we did a lot better,” sophomore Makenzie Tomihiro said.
During the consolation game, sophomores beat the freshmen 6-4, and in the championships, juniors won with a score of 8-2.
“I think it was a great partnership between two clubs that usually don’t interact with each other, which were DECA and Spirit club,” Haley Tran (11) said. “Because [DECA is] so big and one of the more well known clubs in the school, it was great that they also incorporated the class competition with it because we got participation from not only DECA, but also Spirit. It was a good way for the classes to bond during a lunch time game.”
DECA Vice President of Public Relations Logan Drazovich (12) describes the process that went into the planning the game of capture the flag.
“There’s a lot of making sure that we have everything reserved, making sure that people are signed up, getting the word out about it, getting everyone excited,” DECA Vice President of Public Relations Logan Drazovich (12) said. “I think we did a pretty good job. We had a solid turnout.”
The next event for DECA will be the Leadership and Competitive Excellence conference, which will occur from Friday to Sunday in San Jose.
