![“[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)
Scoring last-second basketball shots, battling Gangnam style, gazing lovingly at mirrors, and fencing with pool noodles. The 2012 Homecoming rally featured Olympic themed skits as only one aspect of its Spirit Club led event.
The rally brought back annual activities such as “Name that Tune” with teachers, the Homecoming Court relay, the Scream Off, and Tug-of-War. Kicking off the event, Varsity dance performed to “Glad You Came” and “International Love.” Following their performance was the freshman skit.
The freshman skit included a “battle” with pool noodles between the various classes. The sophomores followed the freshmen with a Toy Story themed skit with Ken and Barbie leading the way. With a skit centered on Simba’s journey through high school, the juniors featured an unlikely alliance between Simba and Scar before Simba’s eventual triumph. The senior skit mirrored the plot of High School Musical with the whole class performing a dance routine to “We’re All in this Together.”
“We did amazing. We kept calm and Hakuna Matata’ed. We put a lot of work into this and everyone stayed after school [this week] till like 7 and a lot of people came to spirit night,” Junior Spirit Coordinator Kenny Zhang said.
The sophomore, junior, and senior classes had full class participation featured in the skit. The sophomores stood up in place and chanted every time the sophomore class triumphed in the skit, the juniors ran across the field, and the seniors performed dance moves.
“I think we did really well, the skit exceeded our expectations, and I think our class had a lot of fun,” Class of 2015 President Sarah Bean said.
Other events included the Homecoming Court relay. In a turn of events, freshman court Annie Zhou and Michael Zhao came out on top for the relay. The competition related to each of the class’s Homecoming theme: the prince and princesses had to shoot basketballs, balance “Simba” on their head, ride a toy horse, and shoot target practice.
“I was kind of clueless, and I didn’t really know what I was doing, but I pulled through. I was kind of like ‘Woah, did I actually win,” Annie said.
After the Homecoming Court relay, the cheerleaders performed a song to a mix of Disney songs.
For the Scream Off, the seniors placed first, followed by the juniors, sophomores, and freshmen. The upper three classes all had some members kneeling in front and others standing in the back in order to get the best acoustics.
The rally ended with the seniors’ victory. In under a minute, the seniors triumphed over the sophomores in Tug of War, while the juniors defeated the freshmen.
“[The spirit event is] obviously a great time for students to relax and just let out some energy. I thought the senior class did very well. We were very spirited, very united,” Class of 2013 President Nikhil Panu said.
Organized by Spirit Club, the rally this year had exceptional planning, according to Spirit Coordinator Kerry Enzensperger.
“Our spirit leadership was amazing. [Spirit Club President Andre Tran] is awesome. I really didn’t have to do much; it was all the Spirit Club,” she said.
Andre said he has been planning the rally for a long time and is pleased with the result.
“I’m just really doing my job. I took on the position because I want to make it memorable for the seniors and so far it’s been really good,” he said.
Ending this year’s Homecoming Week, the dance will take place tonight at 8 p.m.
