With homecoming just around the corner, the school is buzzing with enthusiasm for Spirit Week activities and athletics! The doors opened on Monday morning with hundreds of pajama-clad Upper School students pouring into the halls, marking a great start to a festive Spirit Week. Homecoming and the antics that come with it are a treat, but what makes them so important? Spirit Committee member Hannah Carter ’22 says: “Spirit Week is such a great time to get yourselves excited for homecoming, and it brings yourselves together as a class to try and win the competition. It brings a more laid-back yet excited vibe school-wide… There’s a lot of anticipation in general, [and] it’s channeled into a fun and positive environment.” Spirit has been vibrant this week with creative twin outfits for Look-Alike Day, striking colors between the classes on Color Day, and a diverse array of students dressed in every costume imaginable for Character Day. Prior to Thursday, Betsy Renzo, the Peace and Justice teacher, reminded the school to avoid cultural appropriation for the costumes. Spirit Week provides a thrill to the regular school routine and a strong kick-off to a fun-filled school year. Spirit Committee Faculty Sponsor Sarah O’Brien believes “it gives us an opportunity to really showcase our community, and come together for a common goal of fun and togetherness… There’s a big factor of tradition that is incorporated in it. It’s a way of creating community within your grade, and giving you incentive to showcase and let your light shine, [to show] what’s wonderful about your classmates.” 

There are a multitude of homecoming sporting events this weekend, and it is strongly encouraged that students come and support WFS athletes! The majority of the homecoming games will be against St. Andrew’s School: football will play on Saturday at 2:30, field hockey at 12:00, soccer at 11:00 on the Mellor Field Turf, and the Smith McMillan 5K at 8:30 a.m. starting at the Middle School/Upper School front circle. Volleyball will be playing St. Thomas More Academy at 12:30 in the East Gym. While the dance is a core part of homecoming, athletics make up a large part of what this time in the school year means. As volleyball captain and Spirit Committee Clerk, Jadyn Elliott ’20 thinks “Homecoming’s just a really great time because it’s the one time in the school year where we really celebrate our athletes, not just as students, but giving us the chance to advocate for our games… I think it’s just really important to take the time to [appreciate] those people that put a lot of work into their sports.” Coming out to cheer on WFS athletes is a crucial part of school spirit and brings out the Quaker ‘SPICES’ which are the foundations that makes WFS so unique. “I think the whole week leading up to it just is a necessary way of giving that respect, too, because we put a lot of work into it, being a student and being an athlete,” says Elliott. WFS homecoming athletics bring a special opportunity to represent the determination and pride WFS students exhibit every day, while giving the community something to gather around and share with each other. The festivities of Homecoming 2019 reflect hopes for a successful, brilliant, and inspiring year.