The Brave News

by Brett Baligad, Senior Editor

Last Saturday, the Braves and Jesters community took a trip to the Wild West, as they celebrated Sadie Hawkins Dance. The longtime American tradition made its return to the St. John Bosco and St. Joseph’s community.

In order to get into the Valentine’s Day spirit, St. Joseph’s High School hosted a Sadie Hawkins Dance in the Flynn Center on Saturday, February 11th. Sadie Hawkins was inspired by a comic strip in 1937 written by cartoonist Al Capp and became popularized in America by the early 1940s. Traditionally, Sadie Hawkins tasks the girl with asking the boy to the dance, something not typically done in Homecoming, Winter Formal or Prom. 

St. John Bosco High School was very receptive to this dance idea, as the school saw this as an opportunity to further the already strong relationship with sister school, St. Joseph’s.

“We were excited to bring back another old tradition. After collaborating with St. Joseph’s to bring back the Senior Swap Day last semester, this was another great idea to bring back within the community,” said senior Ryan Gutierrez. “The preparation was very smooth, as both boards wanted this event to be such a success.

The preparation of this dance took weeks because this was an event St. Joseph’s brought back from the ground up. With no recent Sadies Hawkins Dances to reference, the planning committee was open to following old traditions along with ushering in new ideas.

“[The Executive Board] was able to encompass these traditional aspects in the overall theme of the dance but still kept a modern twist by allowing students to dress up in any type of group costume,” said St. Joseph’s Executive Board Member and senior Xochitl Moreno.

Leading up to the dance, many St. Joseph’s girls asked St. John Bosco boys to the Sadies Hawkins Dance. As mentioned, they followed the typical Sadie Hawkins tradition by empowering the girls to ask the boys, reversing gender stereotypes with the Jesters providing posters and flowers to their Brave brothers.

Hosted by the St. Joseph’s Executive Board, the event began at 8pm. Upon entering, students were greeted by a live DJ and colorful lights. Following the Sadie Hawkins traditions, many couples and groups showed up in matching outfits. Most notably, many students stuck to the western theme of the dance and dressed up in flannels, jeans and cowboy hats.

“My date and I dressed up as rappers and I had a dance battle with freshman Nels Nelson. Overall, being the first Sadie Hawkins, I was surprised that so many people came dressed up and matched with their dates,” said senior and Bosco ASB Co-President Tyler Baligad.

As the night went on, the DJ kept the night lively and the dance floor active. Students were offered free refreshments and snacks to keep the energy alive. Along with this, there was a western themed backdrop and photo booth providing photo opportunities for couples and groups.

“I really enjoyed the Sadies Hawkins Dance,” said junior Christian Salinas. “We have never had a dance like this in my three years at Bosco. It was a cool idea, and I enjoyed dressing up as a cowboy.”

The night concluded at 11:00 pm with a ton of positive reviews on the newest dance. With these types of new events being introduced into the Brave and Jester community, students should continue to get excited for the creativity of the Executive Boards.

With Valentine’s Day also in season, events like these serve to help the bond between the two schools. The Executive Boards of both Bosco and St. Joseph’s invite everyone to stay tuned for more school events in the near future. Seniors from both schools can look forward to Prom later in the Spring on Saturday, April 29th.