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Letter: Disappointed parents left out of Senior Night
Op-Ed · April 23, 2015
I spent my entire K-12 years being a West Branch Bear.
I grew up in West Branch, went to school here. I truly love this town.
I learned all my hometown values from my parents and from the education that I received in our school system. I rode my bike on many of these streets, went swimming in the golf course pool and played in the creek close to my house.
I loved running through the neighborhood playing tag, football, basketball and sleeping in a tent in the backyard. I did a lot of babysitting for many families in our town. These are times I will never forget.
So when I got married and decided to start a family of my own, I knew I wanted my child to go to West Branch Community Schools. This happened because of the open enrollment program. K-12, my child was a West Branch Bear!
The years have flown by and now my child is a senior. As my child went through four years in high school, there were lots of ups and downs when it came to sports every year. It was very hard to watch my child attend every practice of basketball and attend games and hardly get any playtime — this is tough on all the kids who put in hard work but never get to play.
Eventually, my child decided there was no sense in putting up with this and did not return to play the next season with teammates who are her friends. So, my senior decided, after a year off from track, to go out again.
I was very happy about the decision because I like watching track and we, as a family, would get to participate in the Senior Night at the home track meet — my proud moment in front of my hometown crowd. What an accomplishment for us, as a family; it takes the whole family to get your child to where they are today.
I was looking forward to walking onto the track with our child as the announcer told the crowd about our child. We could then look out into the crowd and wave and see lots of smiles on familiar faces — our moment. A huge, proud moment as a family.
Didn’t happen.
Just the kids went out on the track.
No parents?
Football had Senior Night, along with cheerleaders and marching band — with parents.
Volleyball had Senior Night with parents.
Boys and girls basketball had Senior Night with parents.
Wrestling had Senior Night with parents.
But no parents on Senior Night for boys and girls West Branch Bears track Class of 2015?
Because it is a small school, some kids get to do Senior Night more than once by being in multiple sports.
I was told this is going to be something that is phased out for athletics because some kids don’t have parents.
Um, how did they get on earth with no parents?
If the parents can’t attend, I have seen, over the years, they have somebody special come out in the parents’ place.
So, we didn’t get our proud family moment because it was phased out before the WBHS Class of 2015 had completed their senior year. I feel robbed!
If this is something that is going to be the future of West Branch School activities, I am wondering: How many of you who look forward to your Senior Night with your child are going to feel left out as I did?
Very disappointing.
We did receive an e-mail apologizing for this decision, but this was a moment you can never get back.
Jennifer Oaks-Rohret,
WBHS Class of 1984,
Solon
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