Decatur celebrates homecoming with parade, pep rally

DECATUR — It was a day of celebration on Oct. 13 when the entire student population of the Decatur School District gathered along Main Street to begin the 2017 Decatur High School homecoming parade.

Around 12:30 p.m., students from Decatur Northside Elementary and Decatur Pre-K schools arrived by bus to Maple Avenue and disembarked, making the short walk to the east side of downtown Decatur. Their fellow students from Decatur Middle and High Schools walked the short distance to downtown. By parade time, well over 700 students, teachers, staff, parents and townspeople lined the parade route which started at Jo Avenue near Grand Savings Bank to the cemetery on Roller Avenue.

Leading the parade was the Decatur High School marching band under the direction of drum major Samantha Skaggs. As it reached the Decatur Public Library, the band played the Bulldog fight song before turning up Roller and back toward the high school.

Following the band were the eight members of the homecoming court and the crown bearers.

This year, the parade had two sport and four class floats. The Decatur volleyball team led the floats, followed by the cheer team and the junior-high football team. The four class floats were an interesting mix of color and costumes. The theme was “Fantasy Stories and Fairy Tales.” The freshmen float looked like an adaptation of a mix of popular fairy tales. It was followed by the sophomore’s version of the popular animated film, “Up.” The two most colorful floats were those of the junior class with its elaborately-decorated version of another animated movie, “Monsters, Inc.” But by far the most popular and the winner of the float contest was the senior class adaptation of Tim Burton’s “Alice.” The makeup alone on two of the main characters, the Queen of Hearts (played by Toby Moppin) and the Hatter (played by Cayden Bingham), was enough to give the seniors the win.

After the parade, the celebration moved to Peterson Gym for the homecoming pep rally.

Every corner of Peterson Gym was filled with students from all four Decatur schools. Opening the event was the Decatur cheer team led by captain Desi Meek. The team, joined by the Bulldog mascot, performed a series of cheers which set the mood for the rest of the pep rally. The homecoming court was introduced to the assembly, and the pep rally concluded with a series of games put together by the cheer team.

The Decatur Homecoming continued with the juniorhigh football game against the Westside Rebels, followed by the coronation ceremony, and concluded with the senior-high football game against the Rebels.

Photo by Mike Eckels The “Alice in Wonderland” float, designed and built by the senior class, made its way down Main Street on Friday during the 2017 Decatur homecoming parade. The seniors were rewarded for their efforts by winning first place in the float contest.

Photo by Mike Eckels After linking arms, members of the junior class tried to stand up together during the 2017 Decatur homecoming pep rally at Peterson Gym in Decatur on Friday. The senior class won the competition.

Photo by Mike Eckels Students from Decatur Northside Elementary line the curb on Main Street in downtown Decatur on Friday, waiting for the 2017 Decatur homecoming parade to begin.

Photo by Mike Eckels The Decatur cheer team and mascot led the student population in a cheer during the 2017 homecoming pep rally at Peterson Gym on Friday.