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As I looked at photos of my beautiful 10th-grade high school niece Aniyah dressed for her school’s homecoming dance, it brought back a flood of memories of my sophomore year in school. Those memories, dimmed a little by time, still hold a lot of its own shine of the homecoming activities of my sophomore year.

The P. S. Jones High School homecoming parade of October 1967 was very special to me. The school’s theme was ‘Together For Progress In Wonderful Washington’, and all the classes from the junior high to high school were invited to take part.

The school put on a very noteworthy event with that parade. It was said to be the best homecoming parade the school ever had at that time. The school’s alumni, many civic organizations, various clubs, a church and sponsors as far away as New York City supported the event. The Mineola School joined the P. S. Jones Junior and Senior High School in making and decorating beautiful floats. Some people said there were over 20 floats in the parade. I remember helping to decorate our school’s librarian Mrs. Perkins car for the Library Club float entry. The Mineola School won first prize for their float.

The Homecoming Queen was senior Brenza Spencer. Her attendants were junior Yvonne Pierce, sophomore Patricia James and freshman Brenda Chapman. The P. S. Jones Marching Band was exciting and wonderful as always to watch and hear. But it was something about the homecoming parade that made the band extra amazing.

Later that evening, there was the annual bonfire on the school’s campus. It was followed by a glorious performance by the N.C. A&T State University ROTC drill team in the gymnasium, and a performance by the Elizabeth City State University Marching Band. That was followed by the homecoming dance. So many great memories were made that night. There were events throughout the weekend and there was even a special worship service Sunday morning at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church. That was a great homecoming. I think even Aniyah would say so when I give her all the details.

Leesa Jones is a Washington native and the co-curator of the Washington Waterfront Underground Railroad Museum.