Havre High homecoming brings back parade

Havre High School is reviving the long-dead homecoming parade at the school parking lots Friday.

“There will be floats from every class,” Jane Warp said.

Warp is a paraprofessional at Havre High School and the new Pep Club adviser.

Bringing back the Havre High School homecoming parade is part of an initiative to gain more community involvement at the high school. Other initiatives she is trying to bring to Havre High is the introduction of an actual horse colored blue to the football games and perhaps pushing for the installation of feeder programs for the college into the high school to prepare students to go to the more popular majors at the college.

“Change is difficult for people,” Warp said. “Let’s make Havre High School back into the powerhouse it used to be.”

The Friday homecoming parade is one of the beginning steps toward returning Havre High back to its “powerhouse” status.

“We’re trying to bring it back to what it used to be,” Warp said. “I just want the students to have stories to tell their kids. When they’re building these floats, there are no phones. It’s old-school, hands-on fun.”

The parade will travel from parking lot to parking lot of the schools in Havre, but will not be a full-blown parade, Warp said. Students will only be on the floats once the floats get to each parking lot due to insurance complications and monetary restraints. Warp said they were not able to get the paperwork done in time to take the parade down 5th Street.

The floats will not go to the middle school because the school was not able to fit the parade into their schedule.

“We want (the students) to have pride in their school and their teammates,” Warp said. “These kids have to work together and when they work together, they can accomplish a lot.”

Parents of students are helping build their sons’ and daughters’ floats.

“They’ve been working on them a while,” Warp said.

Mayke Brenna is heading the construction of the freshman float. Claire Stoner, Carol Pleninger and Stacy Rismon are heading the sophomore float. Margo Chinadle, Kim Scofield and Connie Flesche are heading the junior float. Stacey Waid, Stacy Rismon and Delonna Malone are heading the senior float.

“Next year, we hope to do the class floats in Festival Days,” Warp said.

Pep Club is selling T-shirts to raise money for the floats. Those who want to buy a T-shirt and donate money to Pep Club can do so with Warp at Havre High School. Proceeds go to the float and the decorations for homecoming.

The parade begins at 3 p.m. Friday at the high school.