From the Fall Festival to pep rallies, most of the community-building events and fundraisers occur in the first few months of the school year. The number of spirit events tends to taper off as the school year goes on. Enter: Spring Bash.
On Apr. 6, Senior Class Planning (Splanning) hosted the first Spring Bash in the upper parking lot. “We really just wanted to have another cluster event to raise money and include the elementary and middle school kids in our fundraising,” senior planning member Jadyn Welsh said.
Booths with activities including face painting, origami, hair tinsel, bracelet making, seed planting and flower making provided entertainment for not just students here but also Frost and Cabin John Middle Schools, and Fallsmead, Stonemill, Dufief, Lakewood, Cold Spring and Travilah Elementary School students and their families. “The best part was the face painting station because they were so good at creating and drawing designs on people,” Welsh said.
Junior Pom Aanya Kapoor dances. “I saw lots of happy kids. I think it was a very similar experience compared to the Fall Festival because the younger kids also enjoyed it. I felt connected to the kids. I think that Spring Bash brings pep and excitement to the spring semester just like Fall Festival,” Kapoor said.
Since this year was the first Spring Bash, not many people knew about the event, which could be a cause of the low attendance. “We know now that class planning as a whole should be more informed about the event so that each grade level can help out with setting up and making the event run more efficiently,” Welsh said.
As the weather begins to warm up, larger community events like Spring Bash are usually hosted outdoors, which poses a bit of a risk. “I think Spring Bash could be a very good idea, but I think one of the reasons that it didn’t work out was because it was cold and the weather was not good,” Kapoor said.
Similarly, the last Fall Festival attendance was a record low, most likely due to the weather conditions. After years of being held outside, last year was a last-minute adjustment when it was moved inside due to rain.
This event engaged younger and elementary-age students in an unconventional way that most high school fundraisers do not. The usual Chipotle fundraiser was put to shame by Spring Bash’s moon bounce which attracted families to the festivities. “Spring Bash can be really fun, especially for younger students so I think it should continue annually,” Welsh said.
Spring Bash appears to not only foster a sense of community but also help raise funds for class planning. Specifically, the food trucks and game booths allow local businesses and the school’s clubs to advertise and donate their time to the community. “I think this could be a lucrative opportunity for clubs to increase membership and businesses to sell their products,” Kapoor said.
