Student-athletes who participate in fall sports pose together to promote their upcoming seasons. The athletes are just a few of the many students who will be showcased at Pacer Fest next month. From left to right: Claire Artemus, Vincent Hupp, Mia Saksa, Logan Frye, Braley Howey and Natalie Fiant.
Missy Seslar | Periwinkle Photo
In less than a month, the Pacer Spirit Committee will hold its first Pacer Fest of the 2023-2024 school year, putting the focus on fall athletes.
The event will be the fourth of its kind and will continue the tradition started last year by the committee of having a pep rally to cheer on student-athletes and band members who compete during the fall season.
This year’s Fall Pacer Fest will be held on Aug. 4 and will kick off at 5:30 p.m. at Cornell Stadium.
Junior Mia Saksa, a committee member and one of the organizers of the event, said she and her sister, Claire, joined the committee this year out of a desire to bring more school spirit to Hayes.
“I joined because I wanted to make a positive impact on our community and help bring out Pacer pride in the younger generation of Pacers,” Saksa said.
Claire, an eighth grader, said she joined to allow students at Dempsey Middle School to have more of a say.
“I wanted there to be middle school representation on the committee,” Claire said. “I like being involved with Pacer Fest, and I want to help bring back old traditions and establish new ones.”
The Saksas will participate in Pacer Fest as part of the junior varsity and Dempsey cheerleading squads, respectively, and said they hope Pacer Fest increases interest in all the fall sports teams.
“The goal of this event is to showcase the athletes and their teams to the community and get the community excited for the fall sport season,” the sisters said in an email. “We hope this brings more families out to Pacer sporting events and to establish roots with the younger generation as they embark on their journey as a Pacer.”
The sisters said the event will be free and will include fall sports booths, Kona Ice, face painting, Pacer gear for sale, relay races, introduction of the fall sports teams, a performance by the cheerleaders, and a dunk tank with different Delaware schools administration “getting dunked.”
Once again, Pacer Fest has partnered with First Friday and a shuttle will be at the event to shuttle attendees to and from downtown Delaware.
“I am looking forward to seeing how much Pacer Fest has grown within the community,” Mia Saksa said. “I am also excited for the athletes to see the community cheering them on and getting excited for their upcoming season.”
More information about the event and the committee can be found at facebook.com/PacerSpiritCommittee.
Glenn Battishill can be reached at 740-413-0903.
