The Jack Fathers: Putting Pride and Spirit Back into the Lumberdome

By Jane Forman

Over the past few years, RAL’s crowd at sporting events has been said to be less than vivacious. But this year, three seniors have taken on the challenge of putting spirit back into the stands of the Lumberdome.

Seniors Teran Amnotte, Taylor Froberg, and Nick Bartolus, otherwise known as RAL’s “Jack Fathers” were chosen by Mr. Castro, the founder of the idea, to take on the jobs as RAL’s spirit leaders. They have already made a large impact on the crowd with cheers they introduced such as “The Popcorn, “The Rollercoaster”, and “The Jack-in-a-Box.”

“Our job is to influence the crowd to be louder and more spirited by leading them,” Amnotte said. “When we cheer and get loud, it pumps up the team and they play better.”

The Jack Fathers have many plans for this year, such as their big surprises for the Monarchs at the last civil war game, witty signs, and clever shirts. They have also decided to establish a few new rules for this season, such as wearing all black for every game and dedicating the first two rows to upperclassmen only.

“I think that establishing rules and giving privileges to upperclassmen will be successful because it gives underclassmen something to look forward to and upperclassmen something to appreciate,” Froberg said.

But, Teran, Nick, and Taylor will have to move on at one point and new Jack Fathers will need to be chosen. The boys have already begun scouting for potential leaders and are looking for boys and girls alike who meet their qualifications.

“To be a Jack Father, you need to be able to take control, be creative, and most important, be loud,” Froberg said.

Many duties come along with being a Jack Father. You must come up with creative cheers that follow WIAA rules, be able to inspire the crowd, and brainstorm clever ideas for shirts, posters, and other ideas for games.

“Having more spirit and a louder student section for all sports games will not only pump up the players, but it will also give RAL a better reputation and intimidate other teams,” Bartolus said.

The Jack Fathers hope to begin a long-lasting tradition that will put the pride back in “Pride in a Rich Tradition.”