Miners' Homecoming next week

By IAN MINIELLY

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Wakefield — With the addition of Ironwood to the Gogebic Miners cooperative football program this year, Homecoming is becoming an even more grand spectacle for the three schools and their respective communities.

Ironwood, Wakefield-Marenisco and Bessemer will hold their own Spirit Week festivities daily Oct. 2-6, but they will come together jointly as a football program and rallying cry for the community Friday night.

This year, Wakefield-Marenisco is hosting the homecoming game against Bark River-Harris on Saturday, Oct. 7. The junior varsity game is scheduled for noon, with the varsity game following. Between the two contests, Parents Day introductions are scheduled for all three schools, grades 9-12.

The players and their parents for both the varsity and jayvee football teams, plus the cheerleaders, and all three bands will be introduced and recognized between the two games.

During halftime of the varsity game, all three school sets of Homecoming royalty will be paraded around the field in pickup trucks as the culmination of a week’s worth of effort, but so much more will happen.

Before the Homecoming courts are selected, each school will host its own Spirit Week contests, where students will dress up and other Homecoming-related special activities will happen.

There will be Powderpuff games and contests designed to ramp up the spirit of solidarity within the schools.

On Friday, the three schools will come together for a parade at 6 p.m., featuring all three schools’ cheerleaders, bands and different floats for the kings and queens. The parade is starting at Cormier’s garage in Wakefield, off U.S. 2, heading down Pierce Street to the main drag, before ending at the school, according to Mark Lane, W-M athletic director.

When the parade concludes Friday evening, a pep rally will kick off in the W-M gymnasium with the crowning of all three sets of kings and queens who will be featured at halftime during the varsity game.

Following the pep rally and crowning, W-M is hosting a joint dance with all three schools invited to attend from 8:30 to 11:30 p.m.