Emily Beyer
by Emily Beyer
As a conclusion to the first week of school for the academic year 2023-2024, the first social took place on the evening of Friday, the 25th of August. Everyone gathered at the pool at the Yokohama Country Athletic Club, continuing the tradition of the annual pool social event, which restarted last year after a hiatus due to the pandemic. The High School Student Council, which organized the event, had started the planning process around a month before.
“It took a couple of weeks, but we had the basis done last year, so that was helpful! We had to discuss what the event was going to look like, with food and activities, so we had different groups within the student council be in charge of certain details; this worked well and allowed for different perspectives to be shared,” the executive president of the student council, Sarah (G12), shared.
Trois (G12), the student council vice president, added, “I would say that the most significant part of the planning process was figuring out the pricing for the event because YCAC had raised the costs of their food and amenities.”
The warm summer evening started off with fun in the pool, and the diving board was opened not long after the event began. Soon, a line formed by the diving board while spectators were socializing in the pool. We saw many impressive flips from the students, including perfectly executed backflips, pencil dives, and canon balls. The music playlist provided by the student council put everyone in a good mood, along with the last rays of sunlight, the buzz and hectic nature of the first week were forgotten for a few hours. To take a break from the swimming, food and drinks were available to the students and staff.
Ending the night with a bang, four representatives from each grade competed in a relay race. With their classmates cheering them on from the side of the pool, all competitors were able to give their best. The 10th graders pulled through and placed first,
The pool social was a great opportunity for students to reconnect after the summer holidays, as well as a great occasion for new students to get to know their classmates better. The event was well planned and fun, as stated by Sarah: “I think the event was a success, and we’ve had really positive feedback! Although we didn’t quite get to start on time (because people arrived late), we hope to set a firmer arrival time next year so that everyone gets to hop into the pool as soon as possible! We hope to get a few teachers more involved too!”
Similarly, Trois said: “Students seemed to have fun at the pool party (at least in my perspective). We ended up having to do the activities at the last minute, which was a bit of pain, but nonetheless, it was a great start to the year.”
Already, more fun events are also being planned for the future, with one of them coming up very soon. “ We’ve started planning our October social, so keep an eye out for that! Otherwise, we’re still trying to ‘better Cougar Pride’ through the concession stands at each sports event and the varsity jackets that have been delivered! We’re also working on the mascot, which is really exciting! We’ve got a lot planned, and we can’t wait to make them a reality with everyone’s support!” executive president Sarah said.
The pool social was the perfect start to the new school year. We owe a great deal of thanks to our high school student council and the Yokohama Country & Athletic Club for making this event possible and hope to see its return next year.