School function promotes community engagement, connects student body

Fundraising for the upcoming year, the campus organizes Eagle Fest, which will take place Sept. 29, from 3-7 p.m. Similar to a carnival, Eagle Fest features performances, food and bounce houses. The event is a school-wide opportunity to connect in community with fellow families and alumni. 

According to Jeremy Brown, FC values providing staff, students and families a sense of community within the campus.

“Community is the first thing that I noticed after being hired to be the superintendent of Fresno Christian Schools,” Brown said. “I received encouraging emails two months before my first official day, coming from both current and previous parents, grandparents, alumni, and staff. I read many stories about what a special place FCS was and is to our community. Beginning my 5th year, I would totally agree. A sense of community is every place on and off campus.”

The event is being planned by Eagle Fest event chair, Christine Petersen, FCS alumna, ‘95. She proposed the start of this event last year and since has planned to make it come together. She wanted to start this as an opportunity for students to create memories. 

“The Eagle Fest is an opportunity for families & friends to spend the day together and celebrate the start of the school year while having fun at the same time,” Petersen said. “Often we get busy and do not get to visit with other parents as often as we would like. With an emphasis on student performances and club sponsored booths, this event will showcase the talents of our students and set the tone for the upcoming year.”

One of the performances that will take place is color guard. Shauna Howard, ’20, enjoys participating on the team and learning new routines. She is excited for the opportunity to show off their skills.

“I’m excited to showcase our color guard team to the Fresno Christian community,” Howard said. “It’ll be fun and spread awareness of the program. For Eagle Fest, color guard is also volunteering to run various activities so we can earn money to perform in Hawaii. The best part about being on color guard is being a part of a team and learning new routines. My favorite part is winter guard season, but the fall season is a lot of fun as well.”

While planning Eagle Fest, the committee makes sure to try to find activities that everyone can enjoy. Supporters like Dawn Hinton, Jaime DeGroot and Kristen Karr have all been instrumental in the planning committee. They have included things for the younger students and older students as well as making it enjoyable for even parents and grandparents.

“When planning the event, we tried to include activities for all ages from Pre-K to High School,” Petersen said. “We will have nine different inflatable activates ranging from obstacle courses to bounce houses to slides. There will also be a train that students can ride.  For the older students, in addition to inflatables, there will be a gaga ball pit and the opportunity to dunk their favorite teachers and administration. Who wouldn’t want to get a chance to dunk the staff? Some of the people you may see in the dunk tank include Jeremy Brown, Robert Foshee, Hope Villines, Robert Hyatt, Matt Markarian, Michelle Blackburn, Kristin Eldridge, and Katie Reneau.”

There will be two food trucks, Chuy’s and Konies, as well as food booths that will be selling a variety of sweets, and fair-foods. There will be games and face painting, as well as nine inflatable bounce houses for the kids. All these booths/ activities will be directly benefiting on-campus club and teams.

I. Drinks & Pizza will benefit the boys and girls soccer teams. 

II. Cake Walk will benefit the American Heritage Girls.

III. Nachos will benefit FC Early Education. 

IV. Kona Ice will benefit the cheerleaders. 

V. Popcorn and candy will benefit the Band, Percussion & Color Guard. 

VI. Dunk Tank, Face Painting and Gaga ball pit will benefit the Band, Percussion & Color Guard.

There will be performances by a variety of campus groups in the afternoon:

3 p.m. — elementary cheer

4 p.m. — junior high high cheer

4 p.m. — high school cheer

5 p.m. — FC Band

5 p.m. — FC Color guard & Percussion

General admission is free with food/game tickets priced at $1 each. Ride/jump/play the inflatables all day for $15 (unlimited pre-sale) or $20 at the gate. All proceeds benefit FCS club, sports, and music programs.

For more articles read, BREAKING: Campus band fundraises for Hawaii trip and BREAKING: See you at the Pole addresses issue through prayer, worship.

This author can be reached via Twitter: @toryntriplitt and email: Toryn Triplitt.