It’s Rachel Carson’s 20th anniversary celebration, and the basketball courts are pretty packed. Most of the party is held here on the side the school, but it also stretches to the field and near the front of the school.

Tables line up the edges of the court with items to give out to students. Raffles are held and treats are displayed for winners of the cakewalk to obtain. One area on the court is where the DJ is stationed, with music blaring through the speakers. 

Four food trucks are parked in the Kiss’n Ride lane, selling food and drinks to people. A nearby ice cone station attracts a crowd of people. Groups of people are running around the fields doing an obstacle course that involves a variety of tasks.

“Seems lively, ” said Yosh Sonar, an eighth-grader from the Voyagers team.

The Rachel Carson 20th Anniversary Celebration on Friday, April 20, brought many people together for an eventful evening.

Earlier in the day, a school-wide Kahoot occurred during Panther Time. Hundreds of students around the school participated in answering questions about the school’s history and tried to get the correct answer the fastest. The questions varied from what were the most recent teams to be added to when they added the trailers. Students worked in pairs or by themselves to answer these questions and gain the most points.

At the party in the late afternoon, many students, staff, and families attended to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the school opening its doors in 1998. There were a variety activities for the participants to enjoy, and many students who volunteered were able to get the service hours they needed. Lots of people had fun with their friends and families.

“So many friends around here,” said Dylan Dela Rosa, an eighth-grader on the Yellow Jackets team.

This event was a success for the school because of how many people attended. Natalie Snevely, an eight- grader on the X-Treme team, was one of the students helping out with the obstacle course for service hours.

“I expected it to be a bit smaller,” Natalie said when talking about the crowd at the party.

Rachel Carson’s PTA president, Nancy Linton, was also at the celebration, calling out the winners of the door prizes roughly every half an hour. Mrs. Linton said that they started thinking and planning the party since the beginning of the school year to celebrate the anniversary. Later, the PTA thought about door prizes and a cake walk that could be part of the event. The PTA was also involved in the events that led up to the main celebration, like the dance earlier in the year.

“We wanted something that students and staff could enjoy,” Mrs. Linton said.

Rachel Carson Middle School opened its for students in 1998, and many students have liked many things about their time at RCMS.

“It’s very big and comfortable,” Yosh said.

Many schools like to hear feedback so they can see if there’s anything they should improve on. Yosh said that he felt the electives available at RCMS are too general, and should be split into more specific electives.

“They could improve on the lunch food,” Dylan said.

The party was like no other that happened during the school year. Many people enjoyed being with friends and family, talking about their time at the middle school. Mrs. Linton said that the eighth-grade graduation party is coming, so that’s something eight-graders should be looking forward to.