This year marked the second time that the National Honor Society (NHS) hosted their now annual badminton tournament, with 64 teams competing. The competition began on Wednesday, Feb. 26th, and ended a week later on March 5th. In order to compete, students and teachers joined in pairs and prepared for the competition. Many wore matching costumes and dedicated significant time and energy into their team. Additionally, the entry into the competition was $5, so this fun tournament doubled as a fundraiser, with the National Honor Society raising over $300.
The National Honor Society has picked an activity that not only allows them to raise funds for the club, but also promotes unity and collaboration throughout the school community. It’s important to note that this is the second year of this event, meaning that the first year was so successful and enjoyed by students and staff, that they decided to bring it back. Senior Yarilyn Vasquez was one of this year’s volunteers, who ensured that the tournament ran successfully.
“Last year was the first year and everyone had so much fun so they decided to do it again,” said Vasquez.
Each team truly worked hard and played to win. This year’s champions were physical education teacher Stuart Love, who won last year as well, and senior Jack Surian.
”It feels great [to be this year’s champion], Jack was a great partner. I had a lot of fun playing with him and it’s for a good cause so we had a good time,” said Love.
However, this win did not come easily. It took hard work and determination. In order to secure this excellent team, Surian even asked Love to be his partner months in advance, since he knows how sought out he is.
“We worked really hard honestly,” said Surian. “There [weren’t] a lot of teams out here practicing like us. This has been like a year and a half now. I had to get him early because everybody wants him”
This proves that this tournament does really mean something to the students and the staff at the high school, with some teams even beginning to plan a year in advance. For their outstanding win, Surian and Love will win a trophy and have their names engraved on the Battle of the Birdies plaque.
The teams involved demonstrated passion and determination in order to not only succeed at the tournament, but also to be the most stylish. This year, there was an additional award for best team outfit and with so many eligible candidates, it truly could have gone to anyone. One example of a team who also spent time on the fashion side of the tournament was senior Amber Marquez and music teacher, Margaret Campos.
“My favorite part was getting to plan the outfits and like all of the hype leading up to it,” said Marquez. ”We picked pink because we went for pink ladies, Grease themed, [and] got to keep the theater in it. We went for the 80s headbands and wristbands.”
This year, there were tons of different outfit choices, ranging from Christmas themed costumes to suits. Many pairs took time to plan and choose either a funny costume or one that represents them. It helped make each team feel even more unique in their own ways. During the March 6th National Honor Society meeting, there was a google form posted to vote for the best dressed team and the winners ended up being music teacher Christina Mendolia and Alexa Antoine. This addition of not only having an athletic winner, but also a fashion-based winner, represents that one major goal of this event is simply to have fun.
This tournament demonstrates the importance of both working hard and having fun within the community. Not only is this event a way for the entire school to enjoy themselves and come together, it is also indicative of the ways in which the National Honor Society works overall.
“I’ve always had a positive experience volunteering with National Honor Society and there are so many kids involved in [the club] that it just brings the whole school community together,” said Vasquez. “[As a result,] you get strong leaders all together in one room and you just have a really fun time.”
