In hopes of building community excitement and showing off the high school, The Indian Valley Education Foundation (IVEF) held its first Big Red Cornament on September 16 at the Souderton football stadium.
The event, which the IVEF had been working on for over a year, aimed to show off the facility to any community member that wished to see it.
“We wanted to allow people to come out and see the amazing space that we have here because so often until you are in the high school,” IVEF executive director Ruthie Potter said,“not a lot of people understand what we have and it’s such a gift.”
According to Potter, the event aimed to include “everyone from our littlest kids to our oldest community members.”
To include younger community members, the event had face painting and inflatable sports games such as basketball, soccer, football, and baseball, along with giant Connect Four and giant Jenga.
Local businesses, including The Broad Theater and The Copper Partridge, donated raffle baskets at the event.
Potter said that they wanted to showcase the district’s food service company, Chartwells, at the event.  The company’s sandwiches, tater tots, tacos and more, were served by elementary and middle school principals.
The event also had a table showcasing the high school’s Cornhole Club started by sophomores Jimmy Engler and Liam Aldredge. “IVEF started the event and then we reached out to see how we could help,” Engler said.
Engler said that they gave some of their boards for the event to use, which the club originally got from Peter Becker Community. “We let them use some of our boards,” Engler said. “The residents donated them and we painted them and got the stickers to put on them.”
The players themselves ranged in ages from elementary school students to senior citizens. Community members, along with district administrators, such as Franconia Elementary School principal Laura Heinnick, competed. High school seniors Avery Taylor and Abby Allen also competed.
“I heard all about it on the announcements and then my partner texted me and she was like, ‘We’re doing this,’” said Taylor.
Taylor said the event was “so much fun” and encourages anyone in the community to participate in events like this.
Taylor expressed possible interest in coming up from college next year to participate.
“We should do it again next year and everyone should come,” Taylor said.
Community members that came to the event were not only able to see the stadium, but also the school’s greenhouse.
The school’s SAVE club was there selling mums as a fundraiser to maintain the school’s greenhouse.
Junior Hannah Ruggiero was at the event helping sell the mums. Ruggiero said events such as the Big Red Cornament help bring in money that supports the school.