By Charles Pan ’18, Staff Writer

Laser Tag inflatable. Foods that include everything from popcorn to subs. Basketball, volleyball, wallball, and ping-pong games all around. Swimming pool open to swimmers. Where can you find all these opportunities in one place? Winterfest.

This “fun-filled event,” as Drew Flanagan, a 6^th grade council representative describes it, is an annual Middle School tradition hosted by the Middle School Student Council. Each year, the lower gym is open to all Middle School students and everyone, students and teachers, are welcome to roam around freely. At Winterfest, there are basketball, volleyball, and ping-pong games, an open swimming pool, and an inflatable. Jack Waitz and Roman Wright, two 6^th grade students, say, “It was a madhouse, but it was still pretty fun.”

The basketball and volleyball games were a highlight of Winterfest. Both students and teachers enjoyed playing against each other. Ms. Mason, an 8^th grade science teacher commented, “The faculty-student volleyball game was a really entertaining experience at Winterfest.”

The Middle School council also made an effort to supply lots of food and drinks. This year, the council brought in pizza, popcorn, pink lemonade and water, and ingredients to make your own cookies (gummy bears, frosting, etc.). Many students loved the foods, such as Reid Christmann, a 7^th grader at NA, who says, “The foods were really superb.”

While this event may seem spotless on the “outside,” there were some drawbacks. Dan Glickman, a 7^th grader at Newark Academy, says, “The laser tag was a great idea, but it had a bad design. The other activities were fun, but none of them were new.” Indeed, the basketball and volleyball games have been running for quite a few years, and the laser tag inflatable was quite small. There was also some disorganization within the event, such as dropped food, and lateness of the delivery of pizza, or the video game malfunction. To improve for next year, some Middle School students advise, the MS council could start setting up Winterfest slightly earlier, and have stricter rules of places you can eat and drink.

However, many students were satisfied with the event overall. Both Durga Srivatsan, a 7^th grade council representative, and Catherine Benoit, an 8^th grader, agreed that it was very fun. Greg Gravenda, a 7^th grader at NA, enthusiastically remarks that he is looking forward to coming back next year. The Middle School Council was also satisfied with the event. As 8^th grade council president Alex Chang puts it, “It was a very productive and successful night, and it was a great way to serve the Middle School students.”