![“I wasn't discouraged by some of the obstacles we faced. I learned a lot from the leadership. I found that different people need different ways of receiving feedback — you can't [just] tell them to do something and expect the best. [Some] people needed more incentive. A large part of my role was to figure out what worked for everyone and to figure out how to lead all these separate individuals as a team,” Suhana Bhandare (’26) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/SuhanaBhandare_JasmineHansra-1-1200x798.jpg)
![“This is actually from Randy Pausch Randy P. Brick: ‘Walls are there for a reason. You have to show how much you want to overcome them.’ You have to show how much you want something. That's what I've always been able to do with tennis, Link Crew and getting that internship [with Kushy Baby]. It’s important pushing through that — getting around that brick wall, climbing over it or clawing through it,” Yash Sachdeva (’26) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/YashSachdeva_RamBatchu-copy-1200x1002.jpg)
![“[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)
Winterfest invited students to chill before finals with holiday festivities from karaoke to cookie decorating at Manzanita Hall on Friday.
A fake snow machine sprayed students as they participated in the Winterfest activities like making slime or ornaments outside Manzanita. Holiday music played from a loudspeaker, and students and faculty participated in winter caroling.
Harker Spirit Leadership Team Community Events lead Robinson Xiang (11) remarked on the successes of Winterfest while also acknowledging the improvements HSLT could make for next year.
“I think the event was a success for all the students who participated, especially with new activities like the slime, cookie decorations, and the movie,” Robinson said. “But, we could have promoted the event better to get more people to experience the fun.”
Karaoke performances included those of chemistry teacher Andrew Irvine to “I’m Just Ken” by Ryan Gosling while he cosplayed as the character and yearbook adviser Kevin Oliver to “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” by Brenda Lee. Students Adrian Roufas (10) and Brady Tse (11) sang a duet to “Fly Me to the Moon” by Frank Sinatra.
Director of Learning, Innovation and Design Diane Main performed a rendition of “All I Want for Christmas Is You” by Mariah Carey.
“Although I sucked in some snowflakes, I had lots of fun performing my song,” Main said. “I thought it was great that there were so many students there spending time with their friends, taking time off from studying for finals and classes.”
Many event goers spectated the pieing of the Associated Student Body team, the reward for donating more than 2000 pairs of socks for the holiday sock drive. Attendees entered their names into a raffle for the chance to pie the ASB officers. Aidan Wang (12) pied Alicia Ran (12) first and Rushil Jaiswal (12) pied Jia Jia Jiang (12) for the finale.
Students sipped hot cocoa, enjoyed pizza, or decorated cookies and gingerbread men with colorful frosting inside Manzanita. Attendees also watched the movie “Elf,” which was voted on by the student body in a previous school meeting.
HSLT spent the weeks prior planning the events for that afternoon. They emphasize creating events like Winterfest to help bring the community together during stressful times before finals and college applications.
“We reused a lot of the popular activities from last year,” said Robinson. “After Homecoming, we began assigning tasks and started sticking up decorations around Manzanita. The most important part of the whole process was visualizing the grand result, picturing ourselves at the event and seeing how it would feel for people there.”
During Winterfest, all classes finished up their hallway decorations for Deck the Hallways, a new spirit competition organized by HSLT. Students passed through the front of Manzanita, where the seniors adorned the walkway with snowmen and gingerbread men representing all the members of their class.
HSLT organized Winterfest to encourage students to take a break from studying to participate in relaxing activities with their friends. Community Events member Megha Unny (10) hopes that HSLT’s logistical planning will create a festive experience for students and faculty alike to enjoy.
“It gives Harker students a time to let go and bond as a class because usually we don’t like, talk to everyone in our grade on a daily basis,” Megha said. “It’s also nice to have a time for us to chill, especially when finals are coming up. People need relaxation, and karaoke and snacks and movie night is a very good way to do that.”
