Pack your bags and book your flights, because the next stop is “Destination: Homecoming,” Fresno Christian’s 40th Annual Homecoming. During the week of Sept. 22-26, students will be journeying through a thrilling week. The itinerary is full of spirit dress-up days, princess pageants, float building, the Royal Battle and an epic showdown on the football field between the Fresno Christian Eagles and the Cornerstone Christian Cougars Friday night.
Dress up day: ‘Merica Monday
Kicking off the week, Fresno Christian students show off their patriotism, wearing everything red, white, and blue for the first homecoming dress-up day: ‘Merica Monday. This year, the homecoming theme celebrates cities around the world, so why not take a day to honor our own beautiful country? The dress-up days entail some friendly competition as each grade competes, gaining spirit points based on their participation in each dress-up day.
Wearing an American flag shirt and cowboy hat, senior Tayla Tarlton showed her American pride going all out for the first dress up day of the week.
“I love homecoming week!” Tarlton said. “I feel like it’s such a great time for our school to come together, especially as a senior with this being my last year getting to experience homecoming as a student. I chose to dress up today because it’s fun and because I love the country that I live in so it was a joy to get to be a part of it!”
Freshman float: Venice
Although inexperienced, the class of 2029 is excited to show their float-building skills, inviting the audience on an evening getaway to Venice, Italy. Hosted by the Colla family, the freshmen have been working every Sunday to design, build, and perfect their first high school homecoming float.
Despite varying attendance, the underclassmen work hard and learn as they go, led by the determined efforts of Nicolla Elbert and Weston Klasson. On homecoming day, the freshmen are selling dirty soda and biscotti to go along with the charming Venetian backdrop they’ve worked hard to create.
Freshman Micah Eldridge shows commitment, attending to every float meeting to create an end product he is proud of.
“I enjoyed my first year of building the float because it allowed me to be creative and interact with my classmates,” Eldridge said. “I like how it turned out because it had a lot of people putting time and effort into it.”
Princess Game: Dodgeball
Princess candidates dip, duck, dive, and dodge at lunch inside the FC gym. Playing a classic childhood game of dodgeball, each grade’s candidates tested their agility and precision, playing multiple rounds against every grade. Points were awarded for each round won, adding to each grade’s total score, which will be calculated on Friday and determine the winner of the week.
Presley Meyers, ’29, proved her agility in the first game of three this week after being nominated for princess by her fellow classmates.
“The first game was very exciting, and I was definitely a little nervous at the beginning but it was really fun to play with all the girls!” Meyers said. “I can’t wait for these next few days. My favorite part of the game was getting to choose 3 other freshmen to play with us!”
Fresno Christian’s First Homecoming:
Forty years ago, Fresno Christian’s first homecoming looked not so different than it does now. Even then, they displayed school spirit through three dress-up days, consisting of dressing up as magazine models, grandparents, and showing support for the Las Vegas Raiders or Washington Commanders.
The very first homecoming game wasn’t centered around football, but it actually took place during a soccer match. This was an unexpected, yet memorable beginning to a tradition that has endured for decades.
FC alumnus Todd Arndt, class of 1988, had a front row seat to the very first homecoming in school history.
“Homecoming looked a lot different than it does now,” Arndt said. “For starters, it was held at a Friday night soccer game because our school didn’t really establish a football team until a couple of years later. Even then, FC was still at the old campus on Bullard north of Blackstone, but we couldn’t even host the game because we had one field with no lights, so we all drove to Clark Intermediate School and borrowed their campus.”
“I’d say, though, the heart of homecoming was the same as it is now,” Arndt said. “It was an opportunity for our community to gather for fun and fellowship with a healthy amount of competition. Everyone loved it and I think they still do 40 years later.”
Tacky Tourist Tuesday takes place on Sept. 23, continuing the week-long itinerary. Stay tuned to the week’s events and come out and support Football at 7 p.m. on Friday against Cornerstone Christian High School.
To read more from The Feather, visit PROMO: 40th Annual Homecoming takes off to new destinations or PROMO: FCS College/Career Fair returns
