One of the most exciting events of fall is the annual Homecoming game. As always, Adams’ 2018 Homecoming game, as well as the week leading up, did not disappoint.  Homecoming week was packed with a variety of festivities, culminating with the Homecoming game against the Penn Kingsmen on Friday, September 14. Every year, Adams students participate in multiple traditions in order to prepare for Friday’s homecoming game and this year was no exception. One of the most prominent traditions was Spirit Week, which provided a fun way for students to show school spirit by dressing up according to a different theme each day. This year’s theme days were Meme/Vine Day, Nike v. Adidas Day, Squad Day, Dress to Unimpress Day, and John Adams Spirit Day.

Keeping with the theme of Spirit Week, another important tradition is the designing and selling of a special “Homecoming Shirt.” This year’s shirt was designed by Zuzanna Kukawska and the Student Body Government. The shirt was sold the week prior to Homecoming and was distributed to students in time for JA Spirit Day on Friday.

For each class’ student government, the most critical part of Homecoming was the decoration of the hallways. Traditionally, each class has taken on a separate hallway throughout the school and decorated it in support of Homecoming according to a certain theme. This year, because of Homecoming’s relatively early date, the main hallway was divided into four sections, one for each class. Each class government spent time nearly every day in order to prepare their hallway in time for homecoming week. This year’s decoration themes were Home Sweet Homecoming for the freshman, Under the Sea for the sophomores, Circus for the juniors, and Music Throughout the Decades for the seniors.

Arguably the most important part of the entire Homecoming event apart from the football game is the Homecoming Court. While Adams does not have a Homecoming dance, the Homecoming Court is still honored at the pep rally and the football game. The court is made of six couples, each person vying for either the title of king or queen. The candidates for Homecoming King were Garrett Arter, Zach Fernandez, Ethan Lindley, Cameron McConnell, Mateo Rey, and Stanley Rozenblit. The candidates for Homecoming Queen were Arianna Bordogna-Jurkowitz, Julia McKenna, Ali Mihut, Lorena Morgan, Tanya Wicker, and Adiyah Williams. The senior class voted for the candidates throughout the day on Friday and the winners were announced at the football game. This year’s Homecoming King was Cameron McConnell and the Homecoming Queen was Adiyah Williams.

The day of the Homecoming game included numerous exciting activities for students to participate in. Throughout the day, songs were played over the PA system in order to hype students up for the game. A pep rally was held during 7th hour that included performances by the JA Cheerleaders and the JA Dance Team, as well as the honoring of the football team and the Homecoming Court. At 6 pm, there was a parade from Adams to School Field, which featured the John Adams Marching Band and a variety of floats that represented the school. Though Adams was not victorious against the Penn Kingsmen, spirits were high and the football team fought all the way to the end. It’s safe to say that overall, the 78th Annual Homecoming was a success!