Southwest Dekalb High School Bands

The trip to Orlando with the band was one of the best trips I ever had. The only thing I didn’t like about t was not getting any sleep from the time I left practice to the time we left the school to go to Florida. Other than that it was a really good trip. On the way to Florida we watched movies and ate junk food trying to pass time and make the trip there go by a lot faster. After arriving at the hotel safely we went up to our rooms changed into our uniforms and went to my favorite restaurant, golden carol. The food there was great. That was the only golden carol that actually has a chocolate fountain. This really made my day. Once we were done eating we left for the arena singing random songs. Then we were finally at the battle of the bands. The arena was big a lot of people were there so it had everybody hype for the performance. I finally got the chance to come out the tunnel, and our performance was great. At the end of the battle of the bands we ended by playing in the stands and dancing outside of the arena.

The next day we went t to the Florida classic to see BCU beat FAMU. That was also a great experience event dough we sat in the nose bleed section. I got to start the wave and have fun with my band family. When the game was over we went down stairs to go meet and greet the alumni that goes to FAMU and BCU. Then we called it a night after we got out the pool at the hotel.
Sunday morning we woke up and found out that a member of our family had passed away. Mr. Seda talked to us about it and tried to calm our nerves. Later on we went to Universal and spent the rest of our day there. We rode every ride, all you can eat free food and as many refills as you can get. How could you not like the time we had at Universal. That truly was the best trip ever. Imma miss the band. Its not going to be the same now that this is my senior year. I wish them the best and I know they are not going to do anything less but the best.

by Jullien Womack

Beginning in August, the Mighty SWD Panthers were on a quest for greatness. Led by Head Coach “Buck” Godfrey, the panthers started off the season with lots of heart. Thursday August 25^th brought Game #1 at Hallford Stadium, an away wildcat battle against the Tucker Tigers. From 1^st to 4^th quarter, the crowd filled with SWD students and supporters cheered the Panthers on. Though the televised game ended in a losing score of 7-18, the Mighty Panthers heart was undefeated. As were the infamous t-shirts worn by members of the senior class that caused quite an uproar with administration. Saturday September 3^rd Game #2, at home in Hallford Stadium, SWD was pitted against Carver in a Panthers showdown. SWD emerged victorious with a 39-0 final score. Game #3 was a crushing defeat of the Douglass Astros, home at Pathersville Stadium. The P\anthers returned victorious on that September 10^th with a ridiculous 57-0 final score. Game #4 versus the Marist War Eagles proved the Panthers had a little more work to do on the field, when the September 16^th away game @ Marist ended in a final score of 6-23. The following Friday’s Game #5 back at Hallford Stadium brought the home grown supporters and a win back to SWD. With a final score of 21-0, the Chamblee Bulldogs were no match for our Panthers. An open week for the Panthers gave them ample time to prepare for October 6^th, another feline matchup of Game #6 against the Dunwoody Wildcats. Coming out the top cat, SWD rose from the jungle on the turf with a winning final score of 24-7. The Panthers were showing their pride as they continued on to win 4 consecutive games taking them to the playoffs. In Game #7, home court advantage failed to help the Redan Raiders as they were defeated by SWD by a score of 52-0 at Hallford Stadium. The highly anticipated Homecoming matchup in Game #8 against the Lakeside Vikings was no sweat for the Panthers as they prevailed with an embarrassing final score of 64-0. The season long anticipation for not only the football, but also marching band, cheerleader, and fan base matchup in Game #9 against the Miller Grove Wolverines once again brought the Panthers out victorious. With a final score of 25-0, the Wolverines were defeated without a howl at their own house. The last regularly scheduled game of the season, a “home court” showdown against the Lithonia Bulldogs in Game #10 ended in another SWD victory. The final score of 16-9 sent the Mighty SWD Panthers into the playoffs with a finishing record of 8-3.

-SWD Student, Chelsea. A. Jackson