There was no shortage of school spirit Wednesday as students, faculty, and staff at the Littlefork-Big Falls School celebrated homecoming with a pep fest and parade.
Class cheers, pumpkin pinatas, blindfolded makeovers, and even an unexpected dance accompanied the day’s orange and black celebrations that the entire crowd noticeably enjoyed.
The afternoon’s festivities kicked off with the senior king and queen candidates — including Paige DeLack and Tyler Vork who were crowned at Sunday’s coronation — giving and receiving makeovers. While blindfolded, the king candidates applied makeup on the faces of the girls who did their best to resist dodging lipstick and eye shadow coming at them from all directions. In the end, the crowd’s cheers awarded the best “makeover” to Mitch Nelson and Desiree Belanger.
A tug-of-war challenge between a mixture of students in different grades and pumpkin pinatas followed the makeovers. The tug-of-war turned intense as one side of students yanked their way into victory in a best-out-of-three match-up.
Armed with bats, students then took on pumpkins suspended above the ground and broke them open to reveal what was inside. Although candy wasn’t falling as the pumpkins broke open, flour and other not-so-easy to clean up substances exploded into the air.
The highlight of the pep fest events came when Christopher Bachmeier, master of ceremonies and L-BF dean of students, slid on a blinking pair of glasses and began twirling around to “The Time” by the Black Eyed Peas. Laughter from the crowd instantly started, only to grow louder as Nancy McBride, English teacher, joined Bachmeier in an obviously planned out routine.
The dancing duo were soon accompanied by almost every faculty and staff member at L-BF. The group gathered onto the gym floor for a flash mob-type performance and students could hardly contain themselves as they watched their instructors maneuver through their routine.
Through giggles, one boy was overheard saying, “This is the funniest thing I’ve ever seen.”
As the dance ended, the performers were strongly applauded and students squared off for their class cheers.
Following the pep fest, Vork and DeLack lead a parade complete with a floats warning the football team’s homecoming opponent — the Bigfork Huskies — of the Viking’s hopeful victory.
One sign displayed during the parade read, “It’s a rebuilding year, but we will shine again.” The saying came into account later in the evening as the Vikings fell to the Huskies 58-8.
