For 104 years, the Kirkwood community has celebrated the Turkey Day game through Pioneer Pride Week. Courtney Krus, senior class sponsor, Alyssa Cockerline, senior and class public relations officer, and Suzy Bambini, senior and class treasurer, offered helpful suggestions to ensure everyone has the best Pioneer Pride Week this fall.

1. “Take a trip to Goodwill to find some nice black and orange clothes for Tacky Day,” Bambini said.
2. “Definitely get involved. Participate, work on your hallway, dress up crazy and have fun,” Krus said.
3. “Don’t be afraid to go all out because it makes you and everyone else more excited for the whole week,” Bambini said.
4. “Really enjoy it. Take in every minute of it because we only go through Turkey Week four times, and it will be over before you know it. It will be something that you will remember for the rest of your life,” Cockerline said.
5. “Sleep a lot. It will be a stressful week,” Bambini said.

The Turkey Day game and the events leading up to it are one of the few opportunities of the year when the whole community comes together. The tradition encourages all members of the community to become involved and participate with the school.

“I really love spending time with the class,” Alyssa Cockerline, senior, said. “It’s really fun getting involved with the school and all the activities that get me excited for supporting the school.”

For many students and staff, the best part of the week is decorating the hallways and feeling the spirit and pride that comes along with it.

“Coming and seeing all the hard work that the kids and sponsors have put into creating the hallways and seeing it all come to life. It’s awesome to see and the scale of how big [the designs] are and what we are capable of doing is fantastic,” Courtney Krus, senior class sponsor, said. “I don’t think you can see that in any other school, it’s unique.”

The festivities begin Monday with Tacky Day. Students and staff gear up for school in black and orange attire, Webster’s colors. After school, each grade level begins to decorate their designated hallways, emphasizing their school pride and spirit through different themes.

Tuesday is Red and White Day, where students and staff show their spirit by wearing red and white. Throughout the day, students navigate their way through halls decorated the night before and are introduced to the different characters and obstacles of the halls’s themes. To wrap up the day, there is an all-school pep rally where the seniors perform their yearly skit and the cheerleaders, pommies and band members get the students pumped up for the upcoming Turkey Day game.

Although there is no school Wednesday, the spirit continues with the 12th annual Chili Bowl Cook-off. The competition is held in the Denver Miller Gym, where members of the community come to sample chili prepared by local businesses and vote for their favorite. Afterward, there is community pep rally in the Dr. Holley Assembly Hall where the seniors perform the remainder of their skit and the winner of the Chili Bowl Cook-off is announced. Last, there is a bonfire to finish the night.

On Thanksgiving Day, the moment of great anticipation and excitement comes for the Kirkwood and Webster communities: The 104th annual Turkey Day game. The game will be held at Kirkwood, and the Pioneers plan to reclaim the 400-pound Frisco Bell once again and defeat their long-time rivals, the Webster Statesmen.