Disclaimer: One of the Homecoming King nominees, Cole Sobotka, is a member of the 42fifty staff. He has not contributed to this article.
At the beginning of second period on Sept. 22, the Student Council President, junior Kyra Pattison, announced the 2023-2024 Homecoming Court to the student body over the intercom. The nominees excitedly gathered in the main office to receive their sashes and take a picture together.
The nominations for Homecoming King were seniors Mario Cielo-Salinas, Drake Dunnett, Aidan Poniatowski, Cole Sobotka, and Lemmarr Thomas.
The nominations for Homecoming Queen were seniors Sophia Clinton, Gwendolyn Dehler, Audrey LaFountain, Natalie Meldon, and Lauren Sullivan.
After learning of his nomination, senior Mario Cielo-Salinas said, “I’m feeling fan-freaking-tabulous. I’m really grateful for this and everyone that voted for me!”. The rest of the court nominees expressed a similar excitement and feeling of support from the rest of the OH senior class.
The Homecoming Court is composed of OH seniors and this year’s members are involved in a variety of activities throughout the school community.
Cielo-Salinas is a player for the OH Boys Volleyball team and a member of Believe It Or Not I Care (BIONIC). Outside of school, he likes to volunteer, paint, play club volleyball, and go shopping with friends.
Dunnett likes to spend his free time hanging out with his friends. At OHS, he is a member of BIONIC and plays for the OH Varsity Baseball team.
Poniatowski participates in OH Varsity Football, OH Varsity Track, Speech, BIONIC, and Panther Leaders. Outside of school, he spends time watching sports and working at Chick-fil-A.
Sobotka is a member of the OH Varsity Football team. In his free time, he enjoys playing football and lifting weights.
Thomas loves to hang out with his family when he isn’t at school. He also plays for the OH Varsity Football team.
Clinton is the captain of the halftime dance team and the president of Best Buddies. She is in BIONIC as well as the Science National Honors Society (SNHS). After school, she works at Chick-fil-A and attends football games.
Dehler likes to play lacrosse and see her friends and family during her free time. Here at OH, she is involved in Student Council, BIONIC, National Honor Society (NHS), and SNHS.
LaFountain is a member of the Standing O Theater Company and BIONIC. Outside of school, she likes to spend time doing her homework at the library in between school and rehearsals.
Meldon plays a role in many of the clubs in the OH theater department including Commotion, Stay Tuned, Osweetones, and Modern Music Masters. She also participates in NHS, SNHS, Panther Leaders, and is a member of the BIONIC Board.
Sullivan participates in OH Varsity Cheerleading and uses these skills to teach little girls to cheer. She is also a member of BIONIC and spends her free time reading and designing.
“It’s exciting- started my campaign about a month ago and I’m very happy to get to this point,” said Poniatowski. Several members of the court spent the past few weeks campaigning and posting on social media to encourage their peers to vote for them.
The court was elected by their peers through an online poll that ran the previous school week.
“100% it is the students. It’s the seniors voting,” said Mrs. April Ponte, an OH Student Services counselor and the OH Student Council advisor.
According to Ponte, senior students received a one-time passcode and link that allowed them to cast their nominations for this year’s court. Each student was asked to list the five male and five female students they wanted to see as their king and queen.
The court makes up the top ten most nominated students. After the announcement of the court, seniors were sent another link to cast their ballots for the OH Homecoming King and Queen.
This year’s nominees are looking forward to a lot of things for the upcoming week, including the Homecoming Parade that they have the opportunity to participate in.
“I am really excited to represent my community and be involved with all of the Homecoming festivities!” said senior Gwen Dehler.
My name is Natalie Raabe and I am a senior at Oswego High School. This is my second year as a member of the 42fifty team and I serve as a Managing Editor and the Features Section Leader. Additionally, I am a member of the BIONIC board, NHS, Best Buddies, SNHS, NEHS, Rho Kappa, and Mu Alpha Theta.
