Schools
Corn Boil Brings Genevans Together
Parents, students and residents join in the annual celebration of fall sports and sweet corn.
What’s the best part of going to the Geneva High School Corn Boil?
It depends on who you are.
Parents of fall athletes, including the marching band musicians (who get varsity letters just like the sports teams do), came to see their children step out into the limelight at Burgess Field. Cameras clicked almost continuously while Mayor Kevin Burns introduced each team and each player (except for the 100-plus football players), and more than one mom and dad in the stands wiped away tears before the last team left the field.
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Grade school children flocked to see the role models they hoped to follow onto Burgess Field in the future. “The cheerleaders are so cool,” sighed one young girl as she pressed against the fence to watch the varsity squad perform. “I want to be one of them in high school.”
“I want to be on the dance team,” her friend countered. “They don’t have to lift anybody up in the air.”
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High school students turned out to fill the student bleachers with shouting, horseplay and socializing. “It’s really fun seeing everybody again after a long summer,” said sophomore Alex Dosani.
Lots of families came to see the Marching Vikings strut their stuff on the field. Dressed in half uniforms because of the heat, the band premiered its 2011 pregame show, then played the fight song and the National Anthem. “We love to see the band play. It’s festive, and the kids like dancing to it,” said one dad struggling to corral two excited preschoolers.
And for the long lines of people waiting to reach the concession tables, it’s all about the corn. Locally grown and cooked in water heated in the boiler of a 1918 steam tractor, more than 1,200 ears of sweet corn were devoured by eager fans, said volunteer corn cook Jim Kovac.
“The corn is the best part,” asserted sophomore Kyle Brown. “It’s special because it’s connected to this time of the year. It tastes like the start of the football season.”
New freshman Pace Temple summed up the Corn Boil’s attraction. “It’s eating the corn, watching the band and feeling the real spirit in the stands,” he explained.
Editor's note: I was at the Corn Boil, too, and couldn't resist shooting some photos and video. So in addition to this excellent overview story by Denise, there are five segments coming up in the next day or two. Stay tuned.
