By SHAGUFTA HAQUE – IHS seniors had the privilege of going back to their childhood days at the senior picnic and kickball tournament held on Wednesday, October 21.

Amidst the pandemic, the senior class managed to organize an enjoyable event for themselves, taking obvious precautions. With the hybrid model the school has been following from the beginning of the academic year, most seniors don’t get to see a lot of their friends and classmates as often as they’d like.

Senior Sarah Love commented, “I was glad that we got to have picnic with all of the seniors. Since I don’t see most of them, it was nice to just have a fun night with everyone!”

The event was divided into two parts – the picnic where everyone ate prior to the game and prepared for the kickball tournament, and the tournament itself that had the four elementary schools play head-to-head matches.

Seniors enjoyed the food in the new gym brought by several teachers and senior representatives, all while maintaining social distancing.

“My favorite thing about the picnic was eating together in the gym. That was the first time I got to see some of those people since March and it was amazing!” expressed senior Giavonna Spadafora.

After the seniors were done with the snacks, the team captains of each school gathered with their respective teammates and walked out to the soccer field. The schools had each decided on a color theme for their team – Ben Franklin (green), East Pike (black), Eisenhower (blue), and Horace Mann (red).

“The kickball tournament brought back so many memories,” senior Kaden Duffee remarked, “It took me back to the days of playing kickball and football with my classmates. It was great to get together with old elementary classmates that I haven’t really talked to since. The whole thing was a great experience!”

Once the games on either side of the field started, teams broke out their school spirit to not only try and win, but also to have a good time. The batting orders were followed throughout the tournament while the umpires were cooperative the whole time.

Getting to re-live their elementary school memories was appreciated by most seniors. Senior Clayton Weaver reflected, “The best part was hanging out and rooting for people I haven’t interacted with since junior high and elementary school. It was really cool to have the elementary team spirit that we had back in Battle of the Faculties.”

Despite the ongoing difficulties the pandemic has brought, IHS seniors can only hope to organize another event to enjoy their last days of high school.

[Photos by Erik Puskar]

Photo caption: “Seniors wait in line to eat with everyone, and prepare for the tournament.”