Excitement filled the air on Thursday, September 26th, as Hernando’s annual homecoming parade drifted down Commerce Street. This year’s homecoming parade had more participation than ever before. The parade consisted of homecoming maids and sweethearts, sport teams, club floats and a float for each high school grade.
The homecoming maids as well as the sweethearts, representatives of various clubs and sports, rode in cars that were decorated with flowers and signs. All the girls wore cocktail dresses and tossed candy to the crowd who lined the side of the street.
Multiple sports teams also participated in the parade. While most teams walked by and waved, the football team passed by in an army tank. Joseph Newberry stated he enjoyed the tank because “it stood out in the parade.” Joseph also stated people should watch the parade because “they had fun dances going on and candy was being thrown.”
Multiple other organizations participated in the parade with their game-themed floats, each organization also tossing out candy for the kids. The science club passed through with an interactive mouse trap float. Amanda Luther who preformed the trigger for the trap said, “participating in the parade is great because there’s a lot you can get from it; you fast pace yourself and work in a lot of areas with others.”
The freshmen class was the first grade to perform for the judges. The freshmen used the game Operation as the inspiration for their float. This float consisted of a massive Operation board as well as a giant tiger and lookalike hospital room all crafted from tissue paper. The students dressed up both as patients and doctors. During their choreographed performance for the judges, one student sat on a stretcher while the other “injured” students danced to “Dr. Beat”. Of the four grades, freshmen took home the first place win for best float with performance. After asking about the win Emma Watson stated, “I was honestly shocked but it was pretty sweet.”
The sophomores were the next class to arrive with a Clue themed float. This float was decorated with buildings from the game decorated with glitter, tissue paper, paint and paper. Some students on the float wore costumes that represented the characters in the game. Others dressed as dice while the remaining students dressed in flashy dresses. To top it off, the class shot off fountain fireworks during their performance for the judges.
The juniors were the third class to arrive at the judges stand. Their float was designed around a custom made Monopoly board and giant dice made from crumbled tissue paper. The students wore jail costumes, police costumes, game pieces, and the squares found on the board. Several girls wore colored tank tops with matching color sequin skirts. The outfits had Monopoly like money placed within the waistbands of the skirts.
Finally the seniors were set to perform on their Candy Land float. The float was decorated with play houses recreated as gingerbread houses. There were also crafted life-sized treats such as ice cream, lollipops, and gumdrops. The guys led the float walking down the street with “candy security” shirts pretending to protect the candy. The girls wore candy land shirts with bright colored flared mesh skirts.
The winners were announced the following day at the pep rally by the person who brought the parade together, Margaret Hicks. Hicks declared that there was only a three point difference between the first and second place float. The winners were the freshmen class, with the seniors coming in second place, the juniors in third and the sophomores in fourth.
As the parade continues to grow from previous years, many have started to think of ways to enhance the floats for next year. Knowing the expectations, Hicks already has high hopes for next year’s parade. However, you don’t have to wait until next fall for another chance to catch candy in the crowd. Hernando’s next parade is November 11th in honor of Veteran’s Day.
