HOPKINSVILLE, KY (CHRISTIAN COUNTY NOW) – Decorated floats celebrating Christian County High School athletics, clubs, and alumni paraded through downtown Hopkinsville Wednesday evening, marking the final homecoming parade that the school will hold before consolidation with Hopkinsville High School at the new campus next year.
“It was amazing…I had a really big sense of pride,” CCHS Principal Megan Kem told Christian County Now. She added that around 600 students participated this year, the biggest turnout that she has seen in her seven years at the school. This year, they welcomed in even more clubs and athletics programs than ever before, with basketball players, FFA, Art Club, choir, and more joining in.
This year’s Grand Marshall was Martha Schrecker, who is a class of 1966 CCHS alumni. After graduating from Murray State University, she returned to CCHS to teach grammar, composition, and literature, leaving a lasting impact on thousands of students. Beyond the classroom, she was a familiar face at games, dances, and school events, always supporting the Colonels. Even in retirement, Schrecker has remained a supporter, earning recognition as a Colonel Legend.
While this is officially the last year of the parade for the Colonels, Principal Kem is hopeful that the new Christian County High School will establish new traditions adapted to fit the CCHS Tigers.
This origin of this longstanding tradition dates back at least 30 years for the lead up to the homecoming game. With a long path winding down Glass Avenue, Main Street, and Ninth Street, each year families line the sidewalks as students throw out candy and wave with decorated signs and trailers, with a new addition this year of alumni class floats and prizes given for the most colonel spirit. The evening also included food trucks and a car show.
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