Rolla is known for its extravagant St. Patrick’s day celebrations. The town seems to start celebrating as soon as possible to get the most of the holiday. While there are tons of celebrations outside of school, Rolla high school has one of our own, The Wearing of the Greens presented by FCCLA to bring recognition to the club and to give the school a little spirit.

“It (the Wearing of the Greens) has been going on since before I was here. I’m thinking it started in about the year 1999 or 2000,” says Carol White, the sponsor of FCCLA. “It’s been going on ever since then, we just encourage everyone to dress up in all their green stuff. Over the years, I’ve seen a decline in the participation, which is sad,” FCCLA sponsor Carol White added.

The competition consists of students dressing up as wildly and as green as they can and showing off their fashion statements in front of a panel of judges, who evaluate the top three participants. “It’s go big or go home. When I hear competition, I go for it,” said freshman Adalia Valentine on why she decided to participate. Sophomore Eden Potter likes to show her St. Paddy’s spirit because “There’s a lot of history and it’s big in Rolla. It’s finally time to put my marching shoes back on and play in the parade.”

The Wearing of the Greens took place at the beginning of sixth hour in the cafeteria. With around twenty contestants, the judges had a lot on their plates. The winners of the contest were Martina Swackhammer in 3rd place, Adalia Valentine in 2nd, and Riley Stevenson in 1st. After winning, Stevenson stated, “I feel proud. It was a spirit day and I was like, hey I’ve got spirit for the school and St. Paddy’s day!”