A week in the life of a CHS senior: from bear hunter to homecoming queen
Mackenzi Brunner, CHS senior
Oct. 27, 2011
Photo by Colton Sims
Best friends Cooper Elliott and Mackenzie Brunner were crowned 2011 CHS Homecoming King and Queen.
Photo by Amy Sims
... and Homecoming Queen on Friday.
Photo by Matt Brunner
Bear hunter on Sunday...
When asked to write an article about my homecoming week experiences, I reflected on all of the opportunities the Cashmere community offers. There is a beautiful river that flows through our town, and we are surrounded by mountains that offer prime hiking and hunting spots. The mountains were exactly where I started my week.
The Sunday before the homecoming dance, I was up in the hills hunting for bear with my friends, Colten Sims and Ian Wood. As we started driving back home, thinking we were going to have to leave empty handed, a bear fell out of a tree five yards off the road. It landed on its head, and then stood up looking a little surprised. When it realized there was a car so close to it, it took off down into bushes that surrounded a creek. We jumped out of the car frantically trying to see where it was headed. Gun in hand, I ran after Colten who was running up the road to make sure it didn’t get away. Ian, who was standing near the car, could hear rustling in the bushes just below him. Colten ran back to help Ian scare the bear back to me. I had about a fifteen foot clearing in the bushes to shoot. Before they met up with each other, I saw the bear walking up the hill above the creek. It had walked right into my clearing broadside to me. Without any hesitation, I raised the gun to my shoulder, switched the safety off, found the bear in my scope, and then put the cross-hairs just behind its front shoulder. BOOM! I nailed it perfectly! It rolled down the hill, and then into the creek. I turned towards Colten and Ian and said, “Got it! I got it!” They came running then jumped on me in excitement. We walked to where the bear had stopped, and peeked around a bush into the creek, we saw it laying there dead. That was the first animal I had gutted and skinned all by myself. Later, I learned that the bear was three and a half years old. I was so excited that I had started off my week with a successful bear hunt!
Before the bear hunt, I had found out that I was voted by my classmates to be a member of the royalty court. My mom and I went dress shopping on Saturday to find one for the homecoming dance for the next weekend. As Monday came around, so did the start to a memorable homecoming week. The week was full of class competitions, sports, bingo, noon time games, and the pep assembly on Friday. Classes competed for the much desired homecoming trophy, which comes with bragging rights. We were judged on the percentage of our class that participated in dressing up as the theme of the day, which class won games during lunch and assemblies, and best hallway decorations. The freshman and senior classes were neck in neck all the way to the last day. As final points were tallied, the seniors pulled ahead and won it all. That announcement was made at the downtown pep-assembly. The seniors exploded with cheering and clapping, as the freshman booed. The excitement was overwhelming!
That night was the football game. I hustled home from soccer practice to get ready for the royalty presentation. When I arrived at the game, I was loaded into a golf cart with my best friend, Cooper Elliott. The royalty court was made up of Reanna Avey, Chandler Foreman, Gaby Gonzalez, Mitchell Darlington, Trenton Johnson, Brendan Wagner, Cooper Elliott, and me. During halftime, the band performed, and then it was time for us to roll out. As we rounded to corner of the field, we could see our parents waiting for us. Once we were standing on our designated apple bins with our partners, they began the drum roll for king…Cooper won! I was beyond excited for him! He humbly accepted the crown from his mom, and then they started the drum roll for queen; they called my name! My dad stepped up onto the box intending to replace my princess crown with a queen one. Instead, he just stacked it on. I was so happy that I was sharing the moment with Cooper. I never knew how many grade school kids got excited about royalty until I was given skittles, suckers, and even a kiss on the cheek.
I hope that students younger than me make as many memories as they can before senior year because it goes way too fast! I’m so thankful that I was able to make the memories I did, from a bear hunt to becoming homecoming queen.
