The St. Edward’s homecoming parade took place Oct 29. This is the second year St. Edward’s has featured a parade and the first year where homecoming has been celebrated in the fall. Students, alumni, parents and faculty gathered early Saturday morning to see their fellow Hilltoppers march across campus and showcase their school spirit.

“(It was) so much fun, there were a lot of different groups here today,” junior Zach Benoit said. “I really liked the marching band. It was a cool vibe.”

The parade was a campus-wide celebration, featuring over 20 different departments and organizations, each with their own themes that made them stand out as they walked down Moody Drive. Themes varied from “space” to “cockroach research,” all of which emphasized the week’s celebration spirit.

“We did different decades of cheer … we were trying to do different decades for alumni, just to show cheer has been here for a while,” Cheer Captain Danika Morningstar said.

Students prepared for weeks leading up to the parade by having meetings, making costumes, choreographing dances and creating props that represent their organization or department. 

As one of homecoming’s main events, the parade cultivated school spirit while highlighting some of the most notable campus happenings of the semester, like the reinstatement of cheer as a varsity sport.

“We are just excited to be on campus doing stuff, because being a club team, we didn’t really have that opportunity, and so now we are able to do that which is super fun,” Morningstar said.

For another campus organization, College Assistance Migrant Program, marching in the parade took on a large meaning for its members due to the celebration of their 50th anniversary this year.

“It feels great because CAMP gave me everything,” freshman Justin Trevino said. “They are the main reason I’m able to be at this school, and they gave me the opportunity, so it feels great I can give back.”

Being featured in the homecoming parade gave clubs and organizations a chance to showcase their unique mission. 

“We just wanna be a welcoming community really: another family away from home,” Janice Jefferson, Black Student Association’s event coordinator, said.

As homecoming on the Hilltop came to an end, students that attended the parade had the opportunity to show off their school spirit and connect with their fellow classmates.

“I think it’s just a way of getting involved,” junior Camilla Miranda said. “I think it’s pretty fun also because we’re part of the bio department; we kinda know everyone in the bio department and it does make a bond.”