by Katherin Rivera Ochoa & Neveah Sandoval
On Monday, Nov. 1, Pueblo High School at last had the opportunity to show hundreds of other Student Council students from Tucson and several Southern Arizona towns that we could successfully organize and host a well-orchestrated event.
Student Council members from nearly two dozen Tucson high schools and even small towns participated in the Southern Arizona Spirit Conference, an event that Pueblo has been wanting to host for several years but denied the opportunity because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“[Health] precautions were still in place,” said Pueblo’s Student Council president, senior Antonio Vega, “but everything went smoothly.”
Still, Vega said that the event was a lot of work; Student Council advisor, Mr. Gregory Obregon, agrees.
“I helped to delegate and support Student Council throughout the process,” Obregon said. “There was a lot of organizational responsibilities to take care of—contacting a lot of schools in the region and ensuring that we were prepared for as many as 900 students.”
In the end, more than 600 students from more than a dozen schools attended, a number that still impressed Obregon. A few schools canceled their trip to Pueblo for various reasons—mostly because of transportation and COVID-19 issues.
“We completely started from scratch,” said President Vega, “but we pulled it off, and every school got to boast their school spirit and to collaborate with other Student Councils and share success stories. If I had to evaluate the event, I would give it thumbs up—definitely a huge success.”
Senior class president Anitza Ramirez was also very instrumental in making this event a reality.
“We students were all a little nervous about hosting such a huge event,” Ramirez said, “but judging by the turnout from other schools and by the cheers of each school, this was definitely a success that we all can be proud of hosting. There was some real bonding going on, and that was definitely one of our objectives.”
Ramirez added, “I am so proud of all of our Pueblo students and Mr. Obregon for making this conference so memorable and successful—especially in the short amount of time that we had to organize everything.”
A group of classic car enthusiasts also showcased their automobiles—including vintage Oldsmobiles, Cadillacs and trucks.
Snacks, candy and water were available to all students—much of which was paid for by the Arizona Association of Student Councils.
“I’m continuously impressed with the dedication of our Student Body president, Antonio Vega,” Obregon said. “He is one of the hardest workers I have ever had the honor of having in Student Council. He was super dependable and took charge of everyone working.”
He added, “The senior class president, Anitza [Ramirez] also has such amazing ideas! She is definitely gifted in the creativity department. She has a demeanor that was perfect for emceeing duties at this spirit conference.”