Seniors are one of the last generations to have un-renovated schools. We grew up in the WC Petty without carpets and with an un-updated library, media center, and a dual-purpose gymnasium that students sweat, bled, had a wide range of fluids leave their body in, and then later ate lunch in. Many of us had a class outside of the school in the converted trailer classrooms. Some grew up in Oakland without air conditioning, spending hot summer days sweating and cold days shivering.
Seniors went through Antioch Community High School without the addition of the new commons and bathrooms that have working facilities most of the time. We grew up in a town with a sinkhole in the center, not a splash pad. We walked down Main Street with the alluring JJ Blinkers. We spent field trips walking from school to Centennial Park and wiping our friends around on the tire swing. We spent days having our parents drive us to the Saw Mill to take pictures for the project, which seems we have all had to do.
We had spent the fourth of July littering the streets with our community melting in the 90-degree weather for hours, then gathering with everyone we knew to watch the fireworks—homecoming when the Antioch community sent our football players and cheerleaders to the big game. Young players and cheerleaders were hoping to get to be on the big float. We watch the bands of all ages marching down the street, showing us all the work they have been putting in. We see our community leaders ride down the street in branded cars with the pageant winners in all their glory. We watch our high schoolers gathering at the football field to see the bonfire and watch the fireworks. High school spirit is something we are not shy in. The town-wide rivalry of Antioch and Lakes will live on for generations.
Kids spend hours dressed up in costumes, going from store to store, accumulating candy on Halloween, and their parents following shortly behind. We commend those who get up early on Thanksgiving to participate in the Turkey trot as we pour in for the parade. Every once in a while, we see Antioch ladies walking from store to store, with glasses waiting to be filled during the Wine Walks. We spend Christmas time watching the tree lighting outside the Chamber of Commerce, with the street lit up by Christmas lights and the Dicken statues lining the sidewalk.
As we grow up, we experience parking issues in high school. It is almost a tradition for generations to take the hike from the McMillan field parking lot to the school, ranging from freezing cold to boiling hot. You will see kids walking down the field to get to school in the rain, hail, snow, and blizzards. Newer traditions like Senior Assassin and Senior Sunrise band the students together to enjoy a fun time with their classmates before graduating.
As we embark on the next chapters in our lives, as seniors, it is important to look back at the things that made our upbringing. While we are kids, these experiences often pass us by, but now we reflect on these memories that made us who we are. The Antioch experience, whether you enjoyed it or not these, were special to our community. We will be able to tell stories of our town later on and have people mesmerized by our town’s spirit and traditions.
