Homecoming Week in Ranger Country is not something that any student or community member should pass up. The immense culture and events that occur bring people together in celebrating the district, teams, and overall joy of the school.
“[My favorite part of Homecoming week is at the Ranger Rumble], when I look out and I see future Rangers cheering and older Rangers in the stands about to cheer,” AP World History teacher Brad Anderson said. “We’ve just done the ‘This is Ranger Country chant’, and it’s like, ‘Oh, that’s community.’”
Anderson is a Homecoming Week chairperson, and it’s one of his favorite times of the year. The planning for the events isn’t a ‘month of’ matter, but starts the previous May after student council elections. Although a lot of the festivities are planned by the student council members themselves, like spirit days, themes, etc., Anderson, along with other committee members, coordinates the aspects of the week that the students can’t control.
Anderson’s job includes more responsible roles like organizing transportation, busing, and correct time slots for activities, while also involving some of the fun and creative aspects like designing the spirit shirt for the school.
Homecoming Week is a jam-packed week in Ranger Country. The Ranger Rumble is usually held on the Monday of HOCO Week, but this year it’s been pushed to the Friday before. The Rumble is an assembly on the football field for students in kindergarten through twelfth grade to come together for a few hours of fun. There are various performances, a pumpkin pie eating contest, and many more activities, including this year’s court announcement.
On Monday, the Rumble will be replaced by a tug-of-war contest, and on Tuesday, during fifth and sixth hours, the Powderpuff game will take place on the field, allowing junior and senior ladies to play flag football, coached by the football players in their grade.
On Thursday night, the marching band will host the pep rally in downtown Ada, and then comes Friday, the busiest day of Homecoming Week. During the school day, there is the homecoming assembly, with performances, a final tug-of-war, class lip sync battles, and more. Then, after the school day, is the parade, tailgate, and the Homecoming football game with King and Queen announcements at halftime. Finally, the dance is Saturday, 8-10 pm. Along with all the festivities, there are theme days throughout the week, including Pajama Day on Monday and Ranger Day on Friday. With all of these festivities, there’s a lot to look forward to for all grades.
“Personally, I enjoy all the parts of Homecoming Week,” senior Nick Derbin said. “It’s busy, it’s exciting, there’s always a lot happening, and overall it’s just a good time.”
Homecoming Week can be enjoyed by all grade levels, so there is always something new, and people don’t get bored year after year. For example, seniors get front row spots in the Student Section. Even the guys like Nick get to cheer and partake in Powderpuff, along with the repetitive activities like the lip sync and the dance itself.
“[As seniors], we can celebrate [each other] and put ourselves out there because we don’t really care what people think,” Nick said. “We will be leaders in the community this year.”
While a lot of people have already experienced homecoming week in full swing, the freshmen are getting their first full exposure to the experience. For freshman Aila Duffner, this week comes with a lot of firsts in her freshman year.
“I have heard that [Homecoming Week] is super fun,” Aila said. “[I have heard] that we should definitely participate in all of the activities.”
Luckily, most of Aila’s emotions for the coming week are excitement rather than nerves. She’s excited about the tailgate and the game, along with other activities like the tug-of-war during Monday’s assembly. She does wish that more people participated, especially as a freshman, but still anticipates having a really good time throughout the week.
“There’s not really anything I’m nervous about,” Aila said. “I know that it’s going to be a really fun experience.”
Overall, for all grades and members of the community, Homecoming Week is something everyone can look forward to. As seniors embark on their last Homecoming Week and freshmen on their first, it’s important for everyone to take advantage of these activities and stay involved in the events. Even simple things like wearing red, white, or blue for the Student Section theme on Friday can count as staying involved. We only have so much time in high school, and for Homecoming, we should all come together and channel our inner school spirit for the festivities.
“I really think that students don’t quite know what they have until they’ve left,” Anderson said. “When they leave here and they go, ‘Oh my gosh, that was really cool.’ All the things that we did set the tone for a school year of togetherness and pride.”
