Kylie Manuel ’27
EE Staff Writer
More than half of the Trumbull High School Class of 2027, around 300 students, arrived at Senior Sunrise early on September 11 at McDougal Field. Seniors came together to watch the sunrise, listen to music, take pictures, and eat pancakes served by THS faculty members.
Students arrived on the football field at 5:45 a.m. and gathered while waiting for the sunrise. Music played in the background, and the football field scoreboard displayed “THS 2027” for students throughout the event.
While the sunrise was one of the main parts of the event that students were looking forward to, many students also took pictures with their friends and classmates throughout the morning.
Carley Johnston, a senior at THS, explained that her first thought when she got there was “I really hope that it is going to be a good sunrise”. Students arrived with darkness still lingering outside, making the sunrise itself something they had to wait for as the event began to get started.
The sunrise ended up being very noticeable as the bright red and orange sky lit up, as many students began to take their pictures in front of it.
THS senior, Lilliana Bissonnette, described her reaction noting, she was “super excited that the sunrise turned out so beautiful”.The red and orange sky quickly became part of the event itself, with students stopping to take pictures and using the sunrise as a backdrop with their friends.
As seniors began to take in the morning and the final year ahead of them, the event started to feel more real for many students. “This makes it all feel extremely real”, declared senior Mikayla Kouble. “We are actually seniors, and this is our first major event”. The morning marked the beginning of the year filled with traditions and events that the class of 2027 will experience together for the final time at Trumbull High School.
Class officers also played a role in preparing and running the event. Quinn Mellinger, the senior class secretary, expressed “It was easy for us to run, we created a playlist which seems to be a hit, as well as helped with the decorations”. Before most students had arrived, the class officers had already prepared the music, decoration and other parts of the morning that helped keep the event running smoothly
Trumbull High School principal, Mr. Manuel, also was present at the event and helped with the morning. He praised the event, stating “This was by far the best one of these events we’ve had since we established it as a tradition five years ago, the weather was perfect and I can’t think of a better way for the amazing class of 2027 to kick-off their school year”. His assessment comes after five years of the Senior Sunrise tradition at THS, giving the event significance beyond just the Class of 2027’s first senior gathering.
Students spread out across McDougal Field, with many groups of friends sitting and standing together, playing spike ball or even walking around and taking pictures.
Pancakes with syrups were served to the seniors by members of the THS faculty giving students another opportunity to talk with their friends while they waited for the morning to continue.
Music continued playing in the background through the morning. The “THS 2027” message on the scoreboard was also visible from the field and became a popular background for many senior pictures taken by students.
The event lasted from 5:45 am until around 6:30 a.m. Even though students were at school early, the morning gave the senior class a chance to spend time together and start their final year with an event planned specifically for them.
Senior Sunrise was one of the first big events for the class of 2027. With more senior events still to come through the school year, including the first football game, the Powderpuff football game, prom, and graduation, seniors will have more opportunities to come together throughout their final year. The morning gave students a chance to be together, take pictures, eat breakfast and watch the sunrise as they began their senior year.
Feature Photo Courtesy: Alex Lafaille