Students look forward to Winterfest festivities each year and festivities include picking a theme based on their class color, hall decorating, mural paintings, spirit week dress-up, a pep assembly and a dance.

Through the years, Winterfest themes, colors and activities have changed, but one activity has been at the core of the festivities: The competition for the Spirit Jug. The jug goes to the class that showed the most school spirit during spirit week.

“This is nothing like how High School was when I was in school, we did not have a spirit jug,” Alpena High School Principal Romeo Bourdage, who is a 1986 AHS graduate, said. “What I love is the investment and prep time leading up to today (Friday). The students put so much in, and it grows every year.”

Students from each class participated in hall decorating Thursday after school. This is an important part of the school spirit judging process. Thurston Imhoff, a sophomore at AHS, was dressed in a gold dress jacket for the Sophomore theme of “Gold Rush.”

News Photo by Shannon Vivero Alpena High School’s freshman class is pictured with its theme of Orange County California during a pep assembly on Friday.

“Showing school spirit is really fun,” he said.

Seniors take the competition very seriously with many hours of planning and preparation. Anaelle Fortin, an exchange student from France laughed when asked how school spirit is different in her home country.

“I can have fun in school here; at home we just study,” she said.

Twenty years ago, in 2003, Nick Prevo and Kristen Winter were crowned King and Queen of Winterfest and the classes still competed for the Spirit Jug, which the sophomores won.

The seniors won the jug this year and on Friday, Easton Schultz and Marah Wisniewski were crowned king and queen.

News Photo by Shannon Vivero Alpena High School’s junior class is pictured with its theme of Winter in New York during a pep assembly on Friday.

Christi Schultz, an English teacher at AHS, looked on as her son was crowned king.

“Easton’s dad, Dan and I are excited and proud of Easton. It was special that I was able to be at the assembly and see him crowned king,” she said.

AHS Leadership Teacher Conner Thatcher helped supervise class decorating and smiled as he looked at students and staff working quickly to finish the hallway decorating on Thursday within the time limit.

“You can see the students and the staff unite, there is a positive energy in the air,” he said.

News Photo by Shannon Vivero Alpena High School’s senior class is pictured with its theme of Greatest Show during a pep assembly on Friday.

News Photo by Shannon Vivero Alpena High School’s sophomore class is pictured with its theme of Gold Rush during a pep assembly on Friday.

News Photo by Shannon Vivero Alpena High sophomore Thurston Imhoff decorates at Alpena High as part of Spirit Week festivities on Thursday.

News Photo by Shannon Vivero Alpena High senior Anaelle Fortin decorates at Alpena High as part of Spirit Week festivities on Thursday.

News Photo by Shannon Vivero Alpena High freshman Zack Cloft decorates at Alpena High as part of Spirit Week festivities on Thursday.

News Photo by Shannon Vivero Alpena High junior Bella Rushton decorates at Alpena High as part of Spirit Week festivities on Thursday.

News Photo by Shannon Vivero Alpena High senior Anna Misiak decorates at Alpena High as part of Spirit Week festivities on Thursday.