Building a community

Senior Picnic
On Tuesday Sept 16th, Seniors embarked on their annual trip together, the senior picnic- at Little Hills in San Ramon. They were treated to amazing weather, an outstanding student turnout, lots of activities, and a lot of fun. The Senior class proved to be one of the best in recent history, getting compliments from park staff on their congeniality and manners. They enjoyed basketball, volleyball, softball, soccer, tug of war, water balloon tosses, rock climbing, swimming, and even some organized cannon-balling! 
See video here- http://youtu.be/at0UAWjNe4w

Good time had by all and big thanks to the ASB Senior Class officers led by Ms. Corissa Stobing for organizing such a great event! 

Breaking Down the Walls
The week of Sept 22-25 marked a first for the Warriors, through the funding of the Positive Behavior Intervention Strategies Grant, when the Warriors participated in Breaking Down the Walls, a program designed to foster community and prevent bullying and strife. 

The event began Monday with guest speaker Tyler Durman, from southern California, who spoke about needing each other and how it is "hard to hate someone whose story you know." The students were completely engaged in the talk and Mr. Durman was very well received that day. 

The rest of the week included smaller group workshops with about 150 students each day participating, and 3-5 staff as well. Participants were guided through various activities to get to know one another and to let down their guard, and the day culminated with some true and difficult confessions, the result being as promised, a greater community feel, and participants learning that they are in no way alone with whatever they might be dealing with at school, home, work or in life. Students have described the day as one of the best days of their time here, and some subtle changes were seen on campus in the time after, with people greeting each other, even hugging each other, who had never really crossed paths before. 

Warriors #winning
Both the Volleyball teams and the Varsity Football team scored victories this week, with VB defeating Mt Diablo, and Varsity FB taking down De Anza High School. Our Marching Band, led by Drum Major Claire Rader, also took home a victory, earning a solid 2nd place for both the Marching Band and Color Guard. It should be noted that after a long 12 year absence, this is the 2nd year that the Marching Band has been back at our home football games, pepping up the crowd and bringing the atmosphere to a new level, and it has been an incredible and welcome re-addition. Thank you to our outstanding band director Zach Pattison for bringing back the tradition! 

See Marching Band HERE- youtu.be/-uW2mfrHzK4?a

See Drumline HERE- youtu.be/XSjMrc_ZCHU?a

The stadium got a great upgrade as well, through a generous donor, with brand new 100 foot banners all around including "Welcome to Warrior Country", "Ygnacio Valley High School" and "Welcome to the Jungle" 
Congrats and thank you to our Athletic Director Mark Tran for raising the playing field literally with the new look! 

After an 8 year dry spell, the Varsity Cheerleaders competed for the first time in a USA Cheer competition this weekend in Santa Cruz. The Warriors looked sharp in their performance, hitting stunts and keeping the choreography tight. They took 4th place in their division, and won a bid to Nationals! We look forward to a new competitive era for cheer, and congratulations to coach Ashley Alvarez, serving in her 3rd year for the Warriors! 

Warriors Remember
Last week the YV Community came together to withstand the pain of tragedy, as it was learned that YV Grad Ignacio 'Junior' Avila ("Nacho") passed away from injuries sustained the week before in a confrontation. Junior was a football player for the Warriors (#78) and a wrestler, and was training for the Marine Corps. He is remembered as a sweet, giving and loyal individual with friends who call him "family" and a heart of gold. He will be greatly missed by those who knew him and by the YV community. Coach Puentes, the coaching and athletic training staff,  and the Varsity Football team honored Junior with decals for their helmets and equipment that read "JR 78" that they will wear the rest of the season in honor of our fallen Warrior. Our thoughts go out to his family and friends in this sad time. 

Welcome Back Week

WELCOME BACK WEEK

Sept 8-12

This was the first full week of school and classes, and Warriors spent the week showing their Warrior Pride with spirit days, music lunchtimes, and getting ready for Friday's ASB Welcome Back Rally. 

CRAZY HAIR DAY with the STAFF

Welcome Back Rally
With the theme of 'Game Shows', the ASB class took the rally and made a great event for the Warriors to get excited about the year with. Highlights included a minute to win it game between Freshmen and Sophomores, where our 9th grader showed us how to quickly and efficiently unroll toilet paper, easily taking the victory from the Sophomores. The Seniors and Juniors competed in a So You Think You Can Dance competition, where they had to test their knowledge on how to do the Dougie, the Wobble, the Bernie, and more... 

Dance 3 closed the rally with their performance inspired by Dancing with the Stars, doing the Jive and the Samba. 

 
First Cross Country Meet for the Warriors
 The Warriors converged on Newhall Park to compete in their first meet this season, coached by Elizabeth Frazier. The number one runner for the Warriors was sophomore Jacob Samuels, seen below in the middle with teammates Sophomore Grant Kamita and Senior Andrew Hayes. Congratulations Warriors on a strong finish! 

AND TAKING THE NUT- The WARRIOR MARCHING BAND!
The Golden Warrior marching band competed at the Walnut Festival this weekend, and  the Warriors TOOK THE TITLE!! Led by Zach Pattison, in his Second Year as a Warrior, the Marching band AND the Color Guard both took home the Championship Nut- See their celebration HERE- Congratulations Warriors!!

Golden Warrior Marching Band at the Walnut Festival

Class of 1974 Meets for their 40th Reunion! 
 

ALWAYS A WARRIOR

Friday Night Lights

Week 2 down, not that we are counting! It's been a great week of celebration- let's recap!

ICE BUCKET CHALLENGE... accepted. 
Former YV Vice Principal, Rianne Pfaltzgraff, as new Principal of Concord High School, accepted an ice bucket challenge in front of her student body, fully suited, and then told our own VP, Mr. Efa Huckaby, to accept the challenge as well. For the cause of donating money and raising awareness for ALS, (Lou Gehrig's disease), Mr. Huckaby likewise went out in his shirt and tie in front of the Warriors and accepted the challenge without flinching. Check out the video HERE! Way to go, Mr. Huckaby!

Huckaby a little cooler after Ice Bucket Challenge for ALS awareness

http://instagram.com/p/sQZH7NFYuD/

FROSH FOOTBALL is BACK! 
The football team has a strong frosh line and is back in business! They played their first game against Livermore. They took pretty good hits and unfortunately did not win this one, but they will be back for more this Thursday against Madison Park Academy! Come out and support the team!

You know who else is out there and ready? The Sports Medicine Team! Comprised of 40 senior health academy students, this group is getting trained in caring for athletic injuries and the prevention of further injury. 

Led by Head Trainer, Kelly Cooper, the Sports Med Team is ready to work!

 

FROSH TAILGATE PARTY
The Link Crew with the collaboration of Allyn Monzon and the CARES After School Program threw a successful first freshman event, our annual tailgate party! All freshmen were treated to hot dogs, snacks and water, and then encouraged to go watch our first JV and Varsity games of the season! Thanks for a great event Warriors!!



FIELD DEDICATION and STAFF APPRECIATION

AND FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS

Friday Sept 5th 2014

Marked a great day in Warrior Football history, as the Warriors took on the Bears from Mission San Francisco, in the first football game under the permanent stadium lights. The Warriors took the opportunity to show their appreciation for staff on campus by asking a staff member to wear their jersey all day, and walk them out on the field that evening. The Alumni and Athletic Boosters hosted an alumni reception and a field dedication party, as the stadium was renamed the Coach Richard Ryan Stadium, after the first YV football coach, Dick Ryan, who was present at the ceremony. Coach Puentes led the team to their first victory of the season, 18-14, and the Warriors enjoyed the alumni visits and support from all years of YV history. It was a night for the books! 

Senior Sunrise

This year marked the second annual senior sunrise, hosted by the ASB Senior Class Officers, where seniors came to school extra early to enjoy time together, have some breakfast, and mark the opening of their senior year. The senior year will close in June with the Senior Sunset... and a lot of fun in between! 

 

 First Annual Family Day for Education Academy
Saturday Sept 6th marked the first annual family fun day with the Education Academy, led by Thatcher Palmer. The Academy invited families to come out and play and barbecue together, and the event was a great succcess in starting the year off right. 

 

It's a New Year Warriors!

Warrior Good News

Week 1

August 25

Aaaaaaaaand we're off!! Warriors are back and ready for a brand new year- Students came onto campus Monday with bright eyes and new goals, and were greeted with a new first day of school, revamped and designed by a committee of teachers and administrators with the goal of starting the year off right, getting the students welcomed and acquainted, and creating a culture of community on campus from day 1! 

The freshmen were brought into the gym for the traditional Link Crew orientation, beginning with the entire class and the link crew leaders with some ice breakers and first day of school inspiration, and then they broke off into smaller groups of 10-12 with two upperclassmen link crew leaders each with them, and the groups worked further into teambuilding and getting to know each other, creating a small community of welcome and comfort. They ended their journey back in the gym with further inspiration about how to make the most of your year (INVEST in each day Warriors!) and then joined the rest of the school for an extended lunch period. 

Class of 2018 ready to go!!

Link Crew Leaders doing their own team building

Link Crew Leaders After their Hard Work!

The rest of the Warriors were brought into classrooms for workshops given by teachers about RESPECT, RESPONSIBILITY and COMMUNITY. They were then given a huge treat with a guest motivational speaker, Laymon Hicks, all the way from Florida, who gave the message that if they want something, they need to get up and go get it, not letting distractions take them away from what's important to them. While the day was definitely a break from tradition, the Warrior Team is hoping that this new tradition will be a step in a great direction on campus. 

New Year- New Flooring! 

The old weight room behind the gym has been re-floored, and after 50 years of having a successful and productive dance program, we are finally going to have a beautiful Dance Studio! The room should be ready by the second semester, with painting, sound, mirrors and ballet barres still needed to complete it, but the room is going to be an amazing addition to an already thriving performing arts program! Ms. Cooper, the dance director, couldn't be more excited about the space, and what it means for the program in terms of growth and commitment. Go WARRIORS! 

This FRIDAY- FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS AT YVHS! 

This Friday will mark the first Football game under the new lights, as the Warrior football team takes on Mission San Francisco! The stadium will be getting dedicated to Coach Dick Ryan approximately 7pm, who was the first Football Coach for the Warriors back in 1962. Come out and celebrate this landmark event! Kickoff is at 7:00.