From as early as the 6th grade, there has always been one event of the year that is marveled about by everyone. The tales of anxiety and triumph have been passed on for years at PPCHS. Many students spend months of dedication to prepare for the battle of senior year: Senior Assassin.
Stories have been passed around about participants sneaking around keeping themselves hidden in order to eliminate their targets. Whether it’s waiting it out outside of fellow competitors’ workplaces, ready to “attack” them with the sprays of water guns, or sprinting outside in a frantic chase after their assigned team, the days counted down until the first round are the most anticipated for.
The methods used for preparation can vary, from purchasing large quantities of water guns to keep ready, to filling up buckets and buckets of colorful water balloons to throw at different teams. Senior Dominique Balli shared, “I am planning on buying water guns, I’m probably going to buy a 3-pack and keep them in my car and bookbag, you’ll never catch me lacking, I’ll always have one. I’m never going to be driving my car, I’ll have a different car every day, and you’ll never find me. I’m not going to have a car with any Charter stickers on it, no one is going to catch me.” Similarly, Senior Isabella Duran took another approach, “I bought an electric automatic water gun that shoots 32 feet, I’m sleeping in floaties, I’m doing everything in floaties, I’m wearing floaties 24/7.”
Preparations for such a large event can be very difficult, especially for one that involves the possibility of danger. There are several stories filled with the dangerous acts that many teams in the past have done in an attempt to win. The hosts for this year, Alan Schwartz and Nicolas (Nico) Diaz have solved all ways to avoid any complications. Nico described, “We will be sending out a disclaimer before the game is started that people are responsible for themselves and to make sure no one is trespassing or doing anything illegal. Every year there are usually problems but Alan and I have looked over our rules numerous times to try and find loopholes or specify any confusion in order to avoid problems. We hope these precautions will keep everyone safe and the game fun.” Hosting a challenge with such a large size and excitement factor, it is easy for some participants to get carried away, and take extreme measures to win the game. However, Alan explained, “If we see any actions being taken by teams that might sound some alarm bells we’ll be sure to address them immediately so everyone has fun, out of trouble, and safe.”
To many, hosting this event is an honor that means a lot to those who host it. For years, this has been a tradition at charter, and some would even consider it a Charter legacy. Nico explains “…to put together a complete game just adds onto the legacy created from previous years and we’re excited to carry that on.” Alan and Nico both felt the importance of this role, and knew how significant this was for their senior year experience. Alan explains how “it means a lot to me as my brother won it his senior year and I was also interested in everything going on last year. It is a way to bring our class together and unite it one last time before we move on after graduation.”
As the battle commences, all of the participants submit their Amazon orders for variations of dozens of water guns and water balloons. As the race for who can eliminate their targets before they are eliminated, the real question is, who will come out on top?
