LINK Day Photo Essay
Incoming Freshmen Welcomed to the School By Eager LINK Leaders
LoboTrax member Lilly Brinkman records a video of science teachers Jessie McFadden-Barr (left) and Christine Stricker (right), as they oversee the incoming freshmen in the day’s opening assembly. While LINK day seemed to run smoothly, the organizers faced some minor challenges that set them back, such as a missing bus. “There was a bus that was late,” McFadden-Barr said, “[We were told that] it was going to be 20 minutes late. Then, the kids never showed up, so we called the bus barn, and the bus barn said the kids had already been dropped off. So, we were chasing kids for a while, but they ended up getting here, and the bus wasn’t as late as they thought it was going to be.”
Freshmen and LINK leaders participate in the opening assembly as counselor Justin Neuenschwander leads them through various activities, which ranged from shouting contests to Simon Says. “[My day’s] going great; I’m having a lot of fun,” freshman Anna Nelson said. “[We’ve] just been throwing balls around and asking questions about ourselves.”
Freshmen cheer on their peers as students race against the LINK leaders to pop balloons through hugging. While the day was filled with lighthearted activities, they were intertwined with lessons about what the freshmen can expect to get out of high school and the importance of setting goals for the future. “I thought [the assembly] was pretty fun… I’m excited to have more freedom this year than in middle school, because middle school is like a prison and high school isn’t,” freshman Luke Sweeney said.
Freshman Haley Norris touches the shoulders of the student in front of her, other kids around her carrying out the same motion. Counselor Justin Neuenschwander gave the students several jovial tasks such as this, warming them up for the day’s activities, which included various games and a campus tour. “[I look forward to] knowing where everything is so I am not confused, and meeting some new people,” freshman Daniel Babb said.
Counselor Justin Neuenschwander leads the freshmen through the opening assembly, which consisted of various activities that were meant to be metaphors for life in high school. For instance, teamwork was a very prevalent factor in many of the tasks, and it is also a skill that students will often utilize during their time at Conifer and beyond. After these warm-up games, the students split off into separate groups with their LINK leaders and did various bonding challenges. “[My favorite part of the day has been] trying to teach the kids some of the new challenges,” junior LINK leader Madison Vandergriff said. “It took some of them a while to get it, but once they got it, it was pretty fun.”
Helen Erickson
