Fun traditions have long been a staple at NDCS during homecoming week.
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From dress up days to football games and pep rallies to reunions, the week is filled with festivities for past, present, and future members of the Notre Dame family. To find out more about these exciting traditions, three alumni offered their testament of Homecoming week of their Notre Dame high school days.
Matt Ledesma was a graduate of the Class of 2004. He is now the Dean of Students here at Notre Dame. He loves how most of the homecoming traditions he had in high school are still alive and well today. “My favorite were always the dress up days,” Ledesma said, “I especially liked the movie themed dress of days. If I had to choose one that was my absolute favorite, It would be the day themed Men in Black.’’ Dress up days are most loved by the students as they get to express themselves through the day’s particular theme. “This year we also brought back the movie night on the football field. We did that when I went here so I wanted to bring it back. It’s a fun way to relax and get prepared for the game the next day.” The Homecoming football game is also the highlight of the week. Ledesma shared what it’s like to take part in the game. “My most memorable game had to have been my freshman year,”said Ledesma. “We were playing Denton Calvary who was a really good team. They even had a D-1 commit offensive lineman. It was a close game but we were up late in the game and they had just scored and were attempting the onside kick. I got put on kick return and was praying the ball didn’t come to me. Luckily it didn’t and we won that game. That was very exciting.” Reunions are another tradition of homecoming. They are a great way for classmates to catch up and relive their high school days through their friends. “Reunions are a bit different here, since our class sizes are small we do generation reunions. Instead of just one class reunion, we’ll do say a reunion of a certain decade or so.” Ledesma loves the festivities of homecoming as they bring the school, our family, closer together.
Lisa Macha was a graduate of the Class of 1983. She is currently the head high school volleyball coach as well as junior high science teacher, 9th grade Biology, and 12th grade science. Back when she attended, she was a cheerleader, and was very involved in Homecoming week. “Many of the traditions we had back when I was in high school here we still have today.” For Macha, her favorite tradition is also the dress up days. “We used to go all out,” Macha said, “Like we would all meet at a friend’s house and get dressed together in full costume. My favorite was doctors and nurses day, all of us dressed up and it was just fun.” Macha thinks homecoming week is a fun way to celebrate our school. She loves reunions also, and reconnecting with her friends. Her favorite reunion memory was her tenth, where they rented a trolley and had a progressive dinner. They went from house to house, having a meal and catching up with old friends. Her memorable class motto was “Great and mighty we will be, senior class of ‘83.”
Mary Brady was a graduate of the Class of 2011. She is currently the 4k teacher and junior high girls volleyball and basketball coach here at Notre Dame. Just as Macha and Ledesma said, Brady said that one of her favorite traditions was dress up days. “One dress up day that I will never forget was Camouflage Day. One of my classmates came dressed up in all blue to blend in with the lockers (the lockers were blue before they were repainted). Blue and Gold Day was another one of my favorites because we would come in with knee high blue and gold socks, bright blue and gold t-shirts and shorts, and blue and gold Mardi Gras bead necklaces.” One of the most exciting homecoming traditions for the girls is parading around the football field in cars at halftime of the homecoming football game. “I loved dressing up and riding around the football field in the brand new cars and trucks with my classmates!”
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