On Nov. 8, more 700 students from Mepham High School packed the gym at the Brookside School for the biggest, loudest and most incredible Battle of the Classes to date.

“It was by far the best Battle of the Classes and the ultimate demonstration of what it means to be a Pirate, showing school spirit and coming together to give back,” explained organizer and social studies teacher, Kerry Dennis.

The students participated in pre-events all week including Penny Wars, Class Color Day and American Pride Day in order to earn points toward their final score.  The night was emceed by Special Education teacher Anthony Augugliaro and the events included oversized volleyball, relay races like the scooter relay, three-legged race and chicken relay, tug of war, a dance presented by each class and the famous Pirate Relay. 

“This year's scores were close as each class was competitive and victorious throughout the night, including the faculty team that defeated the classes in oversized volleyball and the three-legged race,” added Dennis. “But in the end, the class of 2019 proved to be victorious.”

The night was covered by the Bellmore-Merrick Broadcasting program and coverage can be found on their YouTube page. 

The night had a more serious meaning, as it raised $5,000 for Building Homes for Heroes, the selected charity for this semester's Senior Service Learning Project. 

To date, the Mepham community has raised over $18,000 from additional initiatives like the Flag Field of Honor and donations in their effort to gift US Navy Petty Officer Ryan Shannon a mortgage free home.