![“[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)
Upper school students marched in Homecoming Week’s annual spirit parade and competed in tug-of-war preliminaries at 9:35 a.m on Tuesday.
Upper school chemistry teacher Andrew Irvine led the procession in a metallic bodysuit, black eye mask and yellow cape, while jazz band members and advisory representatives followed closely behind. One to two representatives from each advisory marched in the parade: frosh in yellow, sophomores in green, juniors in white and seniors in black, representing their class colors. The class of 2024 joined the parade after the advisory representatives, followed by ‘25, ‘26 and then ‘27.
The parade marched in the direction of Davis Field where the first tug-of-war competition took place between the frosh and the juniors. Eight seconds after the air horn sounded, the class of 2025 defeated the class of 2027. Junior class council representative Sam Parupudi participated in tug-of-war and reflected on their victory.
“We got up at the very beginning when no other teams got up and circled around to discuss all the important strategies: sit back, pull with your legs, heavier people in the back and listen to Leo [Sobczyn’s] counting,” Sam said. “We also generally had a good sense of morale. Every single person in our class watching from the stands was cheering for us.”
The second round pitted the sophomores against the seniors. After 24 seconds, the seniors defeated the sophomores. The seniors will face the juniors in the tug-of-war finals on Saturday during the homecoming game halftime. Frosh and sophomores will also compete for 3rd place in a match on Saturday before the Homecoming Game against Crystal Springs, which will begin at 6:30 p.m.
Tug-of-war participant Reza Jalil (12) notes how his class bonded while working together to defeat the frosh.
“We’re a strong class, and we just [had] never [been] united in one way,” Reza said. “I think that we’re the best class, and we have to represent that especially at Homecoming, when all the campuses are there. For the juniors, stay on your feet.”
