On Friday, Oct. 20th, 2017, Wheatley’s Tri-M Music Honor Society hosted the first ever Rocktoberfest in the school courtyard. Though it was not like the Oktoberfest in Germany, it was a fun Fall themed festival for the entire Wheatley community. With a message to spread about the Fall season, expressed through the arts, Rocktoberfest did not disappoint.
When planning this event, Tri-M members took great pride in the performance line up. The great talent that Wheatley has to offer was showcased Those Guys, Michaela Balboni, duo Kaileigh Fiorillo and Allie Levine, Jazz Cats, Elan Mizhiritsky, duo Hallie Arbital-Jacoby and Jessica Poomkudy, and Justin Vega. The setlist included selections ranging from Frank Sinatra to current pop music. The community all sang along to the lyrics of the popular songs, creating a feeling of unity. The event was a joyful kickoff to Homecoming that brought around 80 people together for some Fall fun.
Music was not all that Rocktoberfest offered. There was lots of fun including entertaining games for all ages, pumpkin decorating, face painting, and so much more. Children were roaming about the Wheatley courtyard with autumn cheer, going from station to station with excitement in their eyes. Tri-M members worked extremely hard to plan and execute activities to keep everyone entertained. The most popular activity was donut fishing. The aim of the game was to eat a donut off the hanging string. While everyone gathered around this intriguing game it was filled with lots of laughs along with some embarrassment among the participants.
While games were one of the highlights of the event, there was also plenty of Fall-themed food for everyone to enjoy. Pumpkin spice and everything nice as they say, and that was definitely the case. Foods varying from pumpkin bread, caramel apples, gingersnap bars, hot chocolate and even pumpkin cheesecake was served. There was definitely something for everyone who came out to support Tri-M’s cause.
Rocktoberfest was a great way to celebrate Fall coming upon the community. Not only was it a way to kick off Homecoming in a musical way but, it allowed the area to come together. The members of Wheatley’s Tri-M Music Honor Society put a tremendous amount of work into this event and the community was thankful. Hopefully, Rocktoberfest will be an annual event for Wheatley to enjoy.
Enjoy a few of the many fantastic performances!
