Dragons celebrate at Happy Haunts

Students+across+Ventura+Unified+School+District+come+together+to+dress+up+in+costume+and+celebrate+at+the+Happy+Haunts+Dance.

Melanie Hernandez

Students across Ventura Unified School District come together to dress up in costume and celebrate at the Happy Haunts Dance.

Melanie Hernandez and Ailanie Martinez

Dragons embraced their Halloween spirit with this year’s spook-tacular Happy Haunts dance on Oct. 15, 2021. Organized by the Associated Student Body (ASB), the dance took place in Foothill Technology High School’s (Foothill Tech) quad and offered a plethora of fun and excitement. 

The dance provided a photo booth for students to enjoy, an area dedicated to games, ranging from air hockey to video games and a station where students could pick up drinks and food they had ordered beforehand. 

Ashley Newman ‘22 commented on the decorations throughout campus, “I really like the decor example, all of the trees being decorated, the entrance and stage looked amazing. The lights were just incredible as well.”

Cole Dinkler

The Happy Haunts dance was open to any students who attend schools in Ventura Unified School District (Ventura Unified), but was only free for Foothill students. ASB President Karyme Fierros ‘22 explained, “we’re making it free so that people can just go and have fun, we don’t wanna have this burden of, ‘oh shoot I have to pay’.” 

The dance was described as, “the biggest dance in Foothill history,” by the DJ, DJ Boogeyman. 

Members of the ASB Cabinet had important input on the planning of the dance, especially with the COVID-19 pandemic’s impact. Charisse Lindsey ‘22, secretary and awareness week coordinator, told us that, “part of the reason we’re having games is because we are trying to do layered events this year, in case things do happen with COVID-19, and if we have to cancel the dance part, we can still have the games. ” 

Fierros added that “with layered events, you don’t always have to be dancing, you can be doing other things if you get drained out.”

The dance seemed to bring a feeling of relief and kinship to the student body. Nathan Turner ‘24 remarked that “this dance allowed for so much more school spirit, but most importantly allowed for students to have fun. I definitely saw that this dance brought many people together, but also allowed students to let loose from any stress.” 

Fierros expressed her hope for what the Happy Haunts dance would bring, saying, “I’m excited about people being happy. It’s just nice knowing that there’s a buzz about it, students want to do something that’s related to school, and it brings back a sense of community that we’ve missed.” 

What do you think?