![“[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)
Spirit Night hosted students adding final painting details and themed props to their eagles before the 5:30 p.m. deadline. Karaoke was also held in front of Manzanita Hall. Points from the eagle judging at lunch on Tuesday will contribute to class rankings at Thursday’s Homecoming Rally.
Following the overall theme of animation studios, the seniors implemented their Disney theme by transforming their eagle into Donald Duck and featuring multiple Disney characters. The juniors recreated the iconic Universal Studios logo by painting their eagle as a globe and placing a silver hula-hoop adorned with gold letters around it. The sophomores designed their Nickelodeon-themed eagle to look like SpongeBob, including his porous skin and red necktie. The frosh displayed their PBS theme by portraying characters like Elmo on the base of their eagle.
Senior eagle painter Rumi Gupta admired the artistry and personality in the eagles of each class. She highlighted the community-building aspects, especially between grades, of eagle painting.
“It’s always good to have these events where the whole school comes together and not just the classes,” Rumi said. “I like eagle painting in that sense because even though we were doing it by different classes, at the end, people were still looking at each other’s eagles.”
The junior experienced a surge in eagle painters, from two to the most participants of all the classes. Together, they finalized the ring at the base of the eagle to read “Class of 2026.”
“It’s very casual and chill, but you also get a lot of people who are rushing to finish the Eagle,” junior Celina Xu said. “You don’t [usually] see that many people coming together. Everyone’s having fun, and this is the first time we’ve had so many people in our grade working at once.”
Homecoming Week is the frosh class’s first high school spirit activity, and thus they had the most to complete on their eagle coming into Spirit Night. Frosh Mara Pistacchi recognized 2028’s determination to finish their eagle despite falling behind other classes.
“We had a really strong start, but then we stopped working on it for a while,” Mara said. “Now we’re coming together to pull through.”
Director of Student Organizations Eric Kallbrier emceed karaoke, with students singing songs like “How Far I’ll Go” from Moana, “Symphony” by Clean Bandit and “I Knew You Were Trouble” by Taylor Swift. Faculty also joined, including Director of Learning, Innovation and Design Diane Main singing Radiohead’s “Creep.” The kitchen staff served pizza for students to enjoy throughout the event.
HSLT member Beibei Shen (10), who covered Beyonce’s “Deja Vu” with her friends, loved the collaborative atmosphere with every grade working together towards a common goal.
“Everyone sang awfully but it was done in a fun manner, so nobody cared,” Beibei said. “We need more of that because spirit events are one of the few weeks I look forward to in school. There’s actually something to do and look forward to.”
