By: Erin Lowenadler ’21

     Homecoming Week is upon us. But there has been little talk about this year’s Spirit Week– and if we are even having one. 

     Regarding the regulations for COVID-19, it is an obvious decision that the safest option would result in no pep rally this fall. As Senior Class President, making decisions about our senior year has been very problematic.

     Secretary, Teddi Ferraro ‘21 and I discussed how this year’s spirit week will be one to remember. We want to please everyone, but our hands are tied. 

     “This year, Spirit Week will be split into two days for each cohort. Those days will be Charity Day and Maroon and White Day,” Ferraro explained. 

     The week of. Nov. 16-20, there will be two themed days for each cohort. Monday and Thursday will be Spirit Day and Tuesday and Friday will be Charity Day. 

     Faculty and staff are encouraged to wear one of their Charity Day shirts from prior years. Mrs. Tamburino will be collecting donations to be made on the behalf of the BHS staff to Bethel Social Services. 

     The Student Government made an immediate decision in early September to keep the themed days the same for both cohorts, so it would still be fair, fun and festive. 

     The Bethel High School Director of Student Activities, Denise Musser has been involved in the decision-making process. 

     “Spirit Week will look different in the sense we cannot all be together at once, but we will still celebrate the spirit of being a BHS Wildcat! The student government has been meeting weekly to come up with appropriate ideas to still engage the student body during homecoming week. We hope to still have many of the traditions such as team speeches and updates on their season and friendly competitions during advisories,” Musser explained. 

     “Our priority was to keep some type of normalcy going into the school year with all of the restrictions,” Ferraro added, which explains why the two most popular Spirit Week days are the ones we will be participating in. After all, the seniors deserve the long-awaited Charity Day where they can be decked out in red! 

      While this might not be the best news to the student body, the Student Government made it clear that there is hope for the spring. 

     “Since we can’t have a pep rally this fall, we are planning a normal Spirit Week for the spring. It is really a shame that our freshman and seniors don’t have either their first or last big high school event and we hope to return to some sort of normal again. If we continue to do what we are doing, we will be able to have fun in the second half of the school year,” Ferraro said. 

     If anyone has any questions, please reach out to Lowenadler or Ferraro!