Pictured above (from left): Matthew Gomez, Jacob Ricco, Jack Devanna, Ben Daniel, James Nugent, and Drew Aral. The senior class performs their dance at their last Valley Cup in May of 2017.
Presidents share favorite Pascack Valley moments
Here, The Smoke Signal allows the executive and senior student council presidents to share their favorite memories from their four years at Pascack Valley.
Emilio Quevedo, Executive Council President
My favorite memory as a Pascack Valley student was taking part in our soccer team’s Bergen County Tournament semifinal game against Bergen Catholic.
While we had great support all year from the fans, I did not know if I should have expected a crowd at the game on a cold Sunday afternoon all the way at Ramapo High School, which was the venue for the tournament. It was almost as if people sensed my doubt and wanted to extinguish it right away because when I looked over at the visitor bleachers at kickoff, they were packed with Valley students of all ages, backgrounds, and passions.
After seeing that, I do not think I ever played as hard a game in my life. While in the moment it felt like I was doing it just for the game and to make it to the finals, it was really about so much more than that. It was for every kid at Valley, whether they were in the bleachers or not, because I realized how much our school means to me.
We have such an incredible community at Pascack Valley, filled with the kind of kids who would freeze their butts off on a Sunday afternoon to support their friends. The kinds of kids that were at home watching their Twitter timelines to stay updated on the game. The kinds of kids who, if they weren’t interested in the game, were interested in participating in our community through the arts or academics.
When that game finished and our team won on the final kick of the match, and I started running around in pure joy, I was thinking about how much this win meant to me because I loved representing our school, and bringing it success, pride, and joy.
The 2016 Pascack Valley Boys Soccer Team (shown above) won their league and advanced all the way to the Bergen County Tournament Finals and the State Tournament Semifinals before falling to undefeaed Ramapo both times.
Matt Urrea, Senior Council President
I’ve had a lot of awesome memories from my time at PV. Whether they took place on the fields or in the classrooms, I’ll carry them with me for the rest of my life. I think the thing that I’ll remember most about PV is the Valley Cup.
Looking back, there are two or three that stand out from the rest. The first one that stands out is the last one of our freshman year. As usual, the last Valley Cup of the year required each grade to come up with a dance, and the juniors at the time put on a show that was both risqué and hysterical. I had never been in a place where so many people were laughing at once and it was an awesome experience.
Another Valley Cup event I’ll always remember is the second one of our senior year when we played basketball musical chairs. Being the president, it was always my job to find people to do events, and it was always a difficult task. This time, I harassed Brendan Culloo to participate until he eventually and reluctantly agreed. It ended up being another one of those times where the entire school burst into laughter. I knew Bren- dan was a dirty player from gym knockout, which brings up more great memories, but I didn’t think he was willing to throw his body over a chair in order to win Valley Cup musical chairs, all while almost losing his too-loose pants. When he did that, I, along with the rest of the school, simultaneously lost it and that was the highlight of that Valley Cup.
The third Valley Cup I’ll never forget is the last one. After finding no one else to do our dance, I was stuck doing it. Fortunately, my dance group and I were able to make the best of the situation, taking inspiration from the junior dance three years prior. I couldn’t really hear everybody laughing because I was too focused on catching [James] Nugent in my arms, but it seemed like everyone enjoyed watching it as much as I enjoyed doing it.
These three memories only scratch the surface in demonstrating the amazing experience I had at Pascack Valley, but nonetheless they’ll always stick out a little more in my mind.