Fredonia High School’s ongoing Spirit Week will be capped off this weekend, beginning with Friday’s school day serving as “Hillbilly Day,” where students are encouraged to wear orange and black prior to that evening’s Fredonia football game. Additionally, Principal Darrin Paschke said the Homecoming Parade will be on Friday as well near Barker Commons, though the exact path of the parade is currently unknown.

“It’ll probably be closer to Center Street,” Paschke said. “We’re going to be stepping off around 6:20 for the parade, heading down to the Orange Bowl. I have to thank the Fredonia Village Board, Fire Department, and Police for making this happen. It was really a community effort.”

In lieu of an indoor pep rally for the Fredonia Hillbillies, the pep rally will instead take place immediately following the parade at the Orange Bowl field. Even though the venue of the rally is different than normal, Paschke said there are still a lot of things planned prior to kickoff of Fredonia’s game against Gowanda.

“We’ve got some activities,” Paschke said. “The band will be there marching in the parade and playing at the pep rally.”

Following the game, the school will be hosting a bonfire, while Saturday will feature an outdoor dance at the Breezeway Courtyard, depending on the weather. Once again being as mindful of COVID-19 as possible, the outdoor dance is meant to meet in the middle of safety and fun for the Fredonia students.

“We’re all excited to be able to do this,” Paschke said. “In our communication with family and students, there was a lot of positive feedback from parents this year thanking us for being able to put these things on. It’s a team effort making all these things come together.”

Paschke said that a big focus of the school this year is the feeling of belonging, which serves as a strong theme for the school’s spirit week. Because of the separation and isolation people have been facing due to COVID-19, Paschke said there’s a longing for that feeling of being together.

“It’s nice to see kids getting involved,” Paschke said. “I think there’s a hunger for it right now. There’s a lot out there for our kids to do and there’s been clamoring for it. There’s a lot of positivity right now and excitement being back five days a week and we’re offering a lot of exciting things for our kids.”

Those participating in the parade should gather at 5:50 in order to depart around 6:20 on Friday afternoon.