Students at Rocklin High School come from many different perspectives. Thus, from the seasoned varsity football player, to the incoming freshman girl, it can oftentimes seem hard to spot a common ground for all to stand upon.

There is however, one event each school year that does tend to attract people from all different backgrounds, and that event is homecoming.

Geneva Ten Pas, activities commissioner for ASB, and her committee are in charge of organizing all the dances this year. They are attempting to weave the Dr. Suess homecoming theme that ASB as a whole voted on last May into a night to remember, four months later.

“We’re trying to do like a night in Whoville [and] make the setting more elegant.” Geneva said.

Part of the plan behind this goal includes incorporating a light canopy feature at the front entrance to the dance. Though it has been seen on and off in previous years, Geneva and her committee see a return of the lights this year as a crucial spectacle.

“Two years ago we did [a light canopy] and it had a really good reaction, and last year we didn’t do it and a lot of people missed it.” Geneva said. Their hope is that this year, the lights will generate a positive reaction.

While some, like Geneva and her committee, know the homecoming plans inside and out, there are others who quite frankly do not know what to expect in the slightest.

One such person is RHS freshman Abby Wriston. She claims to have mixed emotions of nerves and excitement going into her first homecoming, especially with the notion that she does not know what to expect.

“I’ve been trying to plan a dinner before it but I don’t really know who’s going yet because I don’t know if my friends are going to get asked, or if I’m going to” she said.

Despite these uncertainties, Abby looks forward to the homecoming and future events her freshman year and beyond, noting the value of the experiences she hopes to embark upon.

“I think [homecoming] is really important because it’s going to be something I probably remember for a long time” she said.

Alternatively, another key figure on the homecoming stage is one who has had a great deal of experience.

Senior Cade Wyant, Rocklin’s third year varsity quarterback, has seen a lot, but nonetheless maintains a humble outlook on what he has done and what he hopes to do.

“It’s definitely been a long process of hard work, but especially with all my coaches and then my parents – my mom and dad are really supportive of my brother [Cole] and I… they definitely make it easy” he said.

Though this game holds a great deal of meaning for Cade personally, and he is setting his hopes on a win, there is something else he also holds as motivation to play well on the 28th;

“I just want to compete and play for my teammates and for my family, and a lot of those people” he said.

So while it may sometimes appear that the sole purpose behind homecoming is to win the game, rally, or parade, Cade reminds us of a more interpersonal note behind it all – to do what you do for others.

What this means is that whether you do band, dance, murals, construction, or anything else, the true magic behind the homecoming as a whole is that it allows each of us to contribute to an event that brings us closer together. Many Journeys, one Home – Homecoming.