On Friday, March 11th, 2016, West Bloomfield High School students gathered together in the gymnasium for the annual Winterfest pep assembly. The assembly follows a week long spirit competition between grades and staff where each group recieves points for participating in dress up days and penny wars.

The event started with a spirited rendition of the classic children’s song, “Row Row Row Your Boat” altered to fit the school’s swamp theme. After the chant, Varsity Cheerleaders skipped onto the floor and gave a quick performance that showcased all the skills they practiced such as tumbling and flying and learned during the school year. Moments after the performance, the members of spirit squad for each classed were announced and posed for pictures.

Following spirit squad, a quick match of jousting occurred between classes and staff. The junior class triumphed for girls and the freshmen class for boys. Unfortunately for the freshmen, teacher Ron Bellamy stepped up to the plate and beat Nick Nafso, resulting in a win for the staff. Moments after the jousting tournament ended, representatives from winter sports brandishing banners, paraded onto the gym floor.

A spirited dance off occured between the underclassmen and upperclassmen, each moving to songs popular in their years of birth. The underclassmen won this event. After the dance off, a game of tug of war commenced with grades and staff members competing against each other. The sophomores won the first battle against the freshmen rather quickly, but the junior and senior match took quite a bit longer. The lengthy struggle resulted in a junior win. The junior class also won against the sophomores and staff.

The assembly then transitioned into a game where people threw cheetos on their classmates’ and fellow staff member’s heads. The staff won with a whopping twenty cheetos. Another game where participants had to shake ping pongs out of a box attached to their back followed the cheeto game and resulted in a junior win. Next came a fan favorite, a sumo wrestling match between the staff. Assistant Principal/Athletic Director Eric Pierce and Teacher Anthony Warner fought it out with Pierce coming out, quite literally, on top. The next match was between Principal Pat Watson and Assistant Principal Eric Pace with a victorious Pace after several rounds.

A basketball game between classes and staff came after sumo wrestling. The teams had four minutes to beat their adversaries and saw a sophomore win against freshmen and a senior triumph when matched with juniors. The seniors also won against the sophomores and staff. The last event in the assembly was a raffle where students could get a Fitbit, Beats Pill, Tiger’s tickets, or a giftcard to Twelve Oaks Mall.

The assembly united classes and staff members together, providing everyone with an experience to bond as a school. The people who attended left with smiles on their faces and fond memories to look back on.