As Heritage Fair creeps around the corner, students begin to prepare for the big assembly and celebration of diversity.
Planning begins as early as December in the ASB assembly committee where students like sophomore Olive Peschel begin the preparations.
“We first start off with contacting the clubs and asking if they are interested in performing,” said Peschel. “Mainly it’s the same clubs every year, like Black Student Union, Muslim Fellowship Club, Latinos Unidos, and more.”
Once clubs are contacted, students begin to plan their performances. Lots of time outside of school is put into perfecting the show.
Sophomore Julia Meredith, vice president of Aloha Club, said, “I am a vice president of the club so I help pick out music, choreograph our Hula or Tahitian dance, and get costumes for our group members.”
As Heritage Fair rolls around the corner, club members also spend many lunches at school and hours outside of school preparing and planning.
Some groups also have president meetings where the president and vice presidents of clubs meet up to pull some extra weight.
“Including president meetings, our club meets around 16-20 times. That is within the three weeks before our performance,” said Meredith.
Other clubs are also putting in extra practice hours to bring their show together.
Sophomore Adrian Harris is a member of Latinos Unidos and said, “We rehearse two times a day, after school and during lunch, in either U12, T5, or the Library.”
Along with the long hours of practice, students work hard in their clubs for a common goal, to showcase their heritage.
Meredith presses the importance of showcasing the Aloha Club’s dance properly because if they mess up or miss their performance, performers feel that it would be insulting to the heritage and culture that they represent as a club.
This year, Latinos Unidos is making an extra effort to really stand out as a club representing heritage.
Harris said, “Latinos Unidos hasn’t made that much of a statement at Carlmont nor has it really asserted itself as a legit club.”
As students continue to prep for the assembly, ASB works hard to make all of the logistics happen between the clubs and the assembly schedule.
“Other than reaching out to clubs, we must also contact our balloon guy and collaborate with the publicity commission for posters, backdrops, and signs,” said Peschel.
As the assembly nears, communication between clubs and ASB becomes more and more important.
If performances are changed, they need to be run by ASB before being presented.
Meredith said, “Communication with ASB is super important, and having friends in the class helps you out when it comes to discussing how much time you have for your performance and when you’ll practice in the gym, etc.”
With all the time and effort put into the Heritage Fair from both sides, clubs and ASB, the two have a common goal: bring Carlmont High School together to celebrate diversity.
Peschel said, “Heritage Fair is about representing every culture and heritage at Carlmont. It’s about bringing all the clubs together and letting them share a small part of their ancestry with the rest of the school.”
