Sydney Gregory
smg002@marietta.edu
If you visit the Dyson Baudo Recreation Center on an ordinary day, there won’t be a lot going on. Fenton Court may be empty other than a team practice and a few community members jogging on the indoor track. If you come on a game day however, Fenton Court paints an entirely different picture. Last week the Pioneer Activity Council hosted Spirit Week, bringing students a plethora of activities designed to spread the Pioneer spirit.
Spirit Week coordinator Erika Massie says that the events were created to increase morale and spirit among the students.
“It’s around the basketball games, based in their pride to be a Pioneer,” stated Massie.
Massie recalls that the activities this year were bigger, and a little different from last year. Massie tried to keep the week focused on basketball since it was the main event of the week.
“I think if you put it more toward an athletic sport that everybody likes to come to already that’s going to get more people to come and different demographics to come and join too,” she said.
Sophomore PAC member Michaila Riley took a more in-depth look at the schedule for Spirit Week.
“Monday we had the contest on Instagram where if you posted a picture with the hashtag you could win a $50 gift card. Tuesday we had Trivia. We passed out beanies at the game and on Friday we had an event in Upper Gilman where you could come and decorate Spirit Week materials, like, little flags, foam fingers, and spirit beads. At the event on Saturday we had towels to pass out, too.”
Additionally, Riley noted that the attendance for the events was on the rise. “For Trivia we had 36 people there and normally we only have 15 or 16 people, so it was a big difference.”
Spirit Week proved to be a success yet again, and undoubtedly helped showcase the importance of student pride in their institution. Judging by the increased attendance at Spirit Week events, it may be the basketball games that bring students and community together, but it’s the infectious Pioneer spirit that unites them at the week’s end.
