The Excitement of 100 Years Brought Together in One Homecoming
October 28th, 2004
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The Stuyvesant Centennial Homecoming kicked off on bright and early on Sunday, October 10, at Midwood Field in Brooklyn. The event, hosted by the Stuy Alumni Association and The Campaign for Stuyvesant, was an exciting day for current Stuy students and graduates alike. ARISTA, Stuyvesant’s chapter of the National Honor Society, provided volunteers that helped to run the affair.
The first activity of the day was the junior varsity football game between Stuyvesant and John F. Kennedy High School. The match was met with excitement – by ten o’clock, the stands were almost one-third full. The roughly two-hour match, however, was a disappointment for Stuyvesant, which lost by [x points]. The crowd was cheered up by the Stuy bands, which were conducted by junior Daniel Jaffe, and played “Celebration” (The Kool Gang), “New York, New York” (John Kander), and “On Broadway” (John Philip Sousa). The band’s repertoire was a diverse combination of '70s funk, marching music, and Sinatra tunes. Junior John Morrell, a trumpeter, said, “I think we sounded great. We only started to practice the music a week ago, and rehearsed the pieces twice before our performance, and it all came together really nicely.” Prior to the Varsity football game at this year’s Centennial Homecoming, the Stuyvesant Chorus, clad in the red, white, and blue commemoration tee shirts that were handed out upon arrival, sang the Alma Mater and the National Anthem. Though the performances was quite difficult to hear, nearly all the spectators in the stands rose and sang along while two Stuy alumni held the American flag. Since this year’s homecoming contributed to the year-long celebration of Stuy’s hundredth birthday, the cheerleaders’ half-time performance had to be extra special. It began with the female cheerleaders in a circle, while the male cheerleaders stood in the center of the circle and flipped a cheerleader up into the air. They danced to songs by Britney Spears and Destiny’s Child, among others. The dancing was well-choreographed and managed to wow the crowd between the second and third quarters. Cheerleading captain Anna Genesin seemed to be satisfied with the performance of her squad, saying, “I think it went really well, we [the captains] watched it a bunch of times before we performed and everyone was always together. Some of the stunts didn’t go up but stuff like that happens.” Once the Varsity Peglegs defeated the Harlem Hellfighters with a score of 20-14 - winning the first homecoming game in five years - Stuyvesant students were given another pleasant surprise. As people began filing out of the stands and the cheerleaders began rushing onto the field to celebrate with the football players, Shelter NYC began their musical set. They played “Harder to Breathe” by Maroon 5, Blink 182's “All the Small Things,” “Hey Ya,” by Outkast, and songs by Jet, the White Stripes, and Jimmy Eat World. The Centennial Homecoming was certainly more enjoyable and exciting than most previous Stuyvesant homecomings. With the amazing (and unexpected) win, the great turnout, and the excellent services provided by the Campaign for Stuyvesant, the Parents’ and Alumni Associations and ARISTA, the entertainment provided by the cheerleaders and Shelter NYC helped to keep everyone interested and energized.
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