The first weekend of school this year found me setting up games on the Circle, such as cornhole, street hockey, volleyball, and badminton. All of these games were being assembled in preparation for an afternoon event directed at the new Second and Third Formers (8th and 9th graders), as a chance for them to bond with new friends. As a member of the SAC (Student Activities Committee) on campus, I’m part of a small student group that is responsible for planning activities for every weekend that students are on campus, including Saturday as well as Sunday, and changing things up so that the boarding students never feel as if there is “nothing” to do. We are a student-led group, and we use our very helpful faculty leader, Mr. LeRoy, to book our outdoor movies, ice cream trucks, magicians, hypnotists, inflatables, and similar attractions.
Anyway, going back to the first SAC event, my friend Andrew (also on the SAC) and I were in charge of running a continuous game of street hockey in front of the Schoolhouse. At first, not many people showed, but suddenly we were approached by a rowdy group of Fifth Formers. This group included none other than the legendary varsity ice hockey player and fellow Zebra Tales writer, Henry Hodde. A wild game of slapshots and stick checking ensued after we split into a blue team and a red team and played for about 30 minutes. However, the boys grew tired and caught sight of an Italian ice cart, so they scattered after the high-energy match. Andrew and I decided to “help” the SAC members in charge of volleyball and abandoned our post at the street hockey station. We met up with all of our formmates and joined a large and equally wild game of volleyball. I can only hope that the new Third Formers were not intimidated by our competitive spirit. I am very excited for what the year has in store for the students of Groton, as we are trying to plan the best variety of fun activities that the Circle has ever seen!
Of course, I could not finish this post without mentioning varsity football’s recent victory against St. George’s to start our undefeated record for our first league game! Another Zebra Tales writer, Caleb ’20, scored three TD’s, including a 98-yard kick return right up our sideline! This game was surely a confidence boost for us, as I know we will face some tough teams later this season.