Harker Day 2025 celebrated both long-standing traditions and big changes on Saturday, as the 75-year-old event attracted nearly 4,000 people to the upper school campus to enjoy games, food, company and a fresh twist on the Homecoming game.
Patrons arrived as early as 11 a.m. to enjoy the assortment of carnival and arcade games set up both inside and outside the auxiliary gym, testing their strength, throwing footballs and shooting hoops as children played on the inflatable obstacle courses nearby. Other attractions included face painting and caricatures. Over by Graduates Grove, visitors cuddled with adorable pugs who were brought to campus courtesy of Tiny Paws Pug Rescue. Eagles fans also headed to the Athletic Center and Singh Aquatic Center to see the JV girls volleyball, JV boys water polo and varsity boys water polo teams in action.
“It’s really fun to see the community that we form here, where everyone really just loves Harker, and there’s a shared identity,” said junior Amy Tong.
The Patil Theater once again filled to capacity for this year’s lunchtime shows, which featured lower, middle and upper school performing arts groups paying tribute to video games and their culture with numbers inspired by series such as “Super Mario Bros.,” “Pac Man” and “Civilization.”
Priya and Kiran Mysore, parents of senior Ishan, were in attendance to see their son perform. “I love the sense of community that’s out here,” Kiran said. “And, of course, I enjoy the performances.”
Harker alums and alumni families gathered at Manzanita Hall, enjoying food and catching up with one another and Harker faculty.
“It’s been great to reconnect with people after so many years, even recognizing some of my elementary school teachers and having them recognize me after so many years. It’s been really rewarding,” said Priyanka Chilukuri ’17.
The other major alum-related event on campus that afternoon was at the Harker Athletic Center, where this year’s Athletic Hall of Fame inductees — Shreya Dixit ’15, Shrish Dwivedi ‘15, Ethan Hu ’20 and Arthi Padmanabhan ’10 – were honored by their former coaches before pulling the curtain to reveal the Hall of Fame display containing their names.
In a major change from previous Harker Day celebrations, in lieu of a football game (which had been canceled due to safety concerns) this year’s Homecoming featured the varsity girls volleyball team facing off against Branham in a nighttime contest at the center of Davis Field, where a floor had been set up to accommodate the athletes. Other beloved Homecoming traditions, including music by the Harker Pep Band, the Junior Cheerleaders, the Eaglets Fly-By and the Harker Choir’s rendition of “The Harker School Song” had been faithfully preserved.
Pre-game activities also included the first preliminary contest of this year’s tug-of-war competition, in which the juniors triumphed to move on to the next stage during Spirit Week.
With Harker up two sets at halftime against Branham, the crowd was treated to performances by the Harker Cheer Squad and Harker Dance Company, after which the seniors won their tug-of-war preliminary to face the juniors. Halftime festivities closed with the crowning of seniors Sophia Ou and Timothy Deng as the 2025 Homecoming Royals. Harker went on to win the game against Branham, three sets to one.
Further coverage of Harker Day can be found at The Mercury News and 49ers Cal-Hi Sports.
