Category: Features

“Howdy Homecoming”

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By Ayza Ali ‘28

Wyoming Seminary’s Homecoming Dance is always one of the most anticipated events of the year; 2025’s event opened up the dance floor for a night to remember. Following an unfortunate Homecoming football game loss, students mustered up their school spirit once again for the dance. Held on October 11, 2025, the dance brought the entire school together for a night of dancing, fun, and memories. With help from both students and faculty, the gym was transformed into a dazzling dance floor. 

The Homecoming Dance turned out to be a success, especially since this year was the first time a dance introduced a theme. The theme, Western Rodeo, added another layer of excitement to the night and made the event more unique and memorable. Although some students weren’t fond of the theme chosen, most were pleased with the idea of having a theme at all. True Blue assisted with the dance preparations and in accordance with the theme, spruced up the gym with Western decorations. From haystacks to a mini photobooth to a giant “Hoco” sign, “the decorations matched the theme perfectly, [creating] a nice vibe in the gym” gushed Sadahlia Poepperling ‘27. Aside from the decorations, many students themselves also embraced the theme by donning cowboy hats and boots to add a Western touch to their outfits. The dance itself had a wonderful turnout, joining the community together for an energetic night.

All this is not to say that there was no room for improvement. The biggest concern students had was with the music. Although most songs matched the mood of the night, students weren’t too fond that each song was played whole, instead of the DJ blending songs together. Eshaal Ahmad ‘26 specifically pointed out,“the songs were fine, but they lasted too long. It wasn’t as enjoyable as previous dances.” Many others had similar opinions and found it hard to engage with the playlist and left the dance floor. Aside from the music, students also found the food selection (pretzel bites, brownies, and cookies) to be a bit unappealing. Eshaal Ahmad ‘26 again, sighed “of course we weren’t expecting a whole meal, but it could’ve been better.” However, the disappointment created by the tunes and finger foods did not overpower general enjoyment; students ultimately left the dance with smiles and memories for life.

Overall, the 2025 Homecoming Dance was a memorable night that brought the Wyoming Seminary community together in a fun and festive atmosphere. Creating themes for dances added a new and exciting element. It’s also very clear that students and faculty put a lot of effort into making the night special. While there were some things that could have been improved, they are small details compared to the success of the event. The night showcased student’s love for school events and set a clear foundation for future dances.

New BNT Company Centered On Mental Health

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By Michael DeMuro ‘27

Over the summer of 2025, Emmanuel Onyemali ’26, a Senior Wyoming Seminary student, and Levi Sprague started a new clothing company named Better Next Time (BNT). Not only does BNT sell a wide variety of high-quality clothing, but it also serves as a platform to spread mental health awareness through its message, ‘Better next time.’ This message serves not as an excuse, but as permission to fail, as well as motivation for improvement. Whether it’s a loss in a wrestling match, a bad performance in football, or a failing grade on a test, the message means that next time, you will be better, you will not make the same mistakes, and you will slowly become an improved version of yourself.

Onyemali’s inspiration for creating this clothing brand was his mother, and their struggle together during their transition from Nigeria to Canada about seven years ago. When things began to settle down for him and his family, he decided to use his story of strength to help his friends and family, who he knew struggled with mental health. Onyemali decided to use clothing as the main way to market his message because the way we armor our bodies with clothes is the way we should armor our minds with positive energy and the ability to control how we react to tough situations. 

Currently, BNT has around 500 followers across all social media platforms and is growing steadily. In fact, BNT has been named the number one small business in Canada for 2025. Additionally, Onyemali was featured on CBC national radio to talk about his company and the message that it delivers. When asked how BNT reflects Wyoming Seminary, Rachel Bartron, Head of the Upper School campus, said, “…Better Next Time is the constant conversation that our adults and students have regarding anything that students are doing.” 

The way that the name, Better Next Time, was created is also quite extraordinary. As Onyemali put it, “When I thought about the name, it appeared to me in a dream a month prior… fast forward a month, and I’m sitting in my basement, and it kinda just popped in my head, like a downward from God Himself.” It was also conveniently short and catchy, so he stuck with it, giving the world the powerful movement that we have now. 

When asked about the ultimate legacy Onyemali wants to leave behind with his company, he said, “The biggest legacy is healing. Healing generations by spreading a good message. That is the legacy I want to and I will leave behind.”

Society Day ’25

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By Michael DeMuro ’27

Society Day is the most anticipated event at Wyoming Seminary. Throughout the school year, it builds up more and more until the day it arrives. As the year progresses, there are different competitions between all four societies, those being Alexandrian, Florentine, Oxonian, and Athenian, to gather points. Some of these competitions can be a food drive, SEM DM, or a pep rally. All these points accumulate over time, setting the stage for the final event: Society Day.

Out of every sports game, every school dance, and every ski trip, all pale in comparison to Society Day, not just in terms of the effort it takes to organize and set up, from both faculty and society leaders, but also in terms of how well it is received by the student body.

Society Day is the last day of school before finals begin. According to Brennan Twardowski ‘10, “Society Day has been around for decades; it went on hiatus from 1992-2005 and has continued every year since it was brought back by the Class of 2005.” While the other small society events set the stage for who wins, Society Day is the ultimate factor because of the sheer number of activities and points that can be won from those activities.

In terms of the process that goes into preparing for society day, the same activities are chosen every year, for example, dodgeball and the dance competition. For the society leaders, the real process is having to organize who does what activities when. In terms of preparation, Jagar Macdonald ‘25 said, “We’ll meet up at somebody’s house, order food, and put together some ideas so we don’t have to rush it.”

When Society Day ends, everyone meets at Nesbitt Stadium for the big reveal of who won. The crowd’s tension is at its highest until finally, the banner drops with wins. Last year, Oxonion won Society Day, and the energy when it was revealed was unprecedented. Every time a society wins, they receive a banner that is hung inside the blue gym. Until this year’s Society Day arrives, all we can do is wait and see who’s on top this year.