It’s the most wonderful time of the year! The long-awaited countdown to winter break is upon us.
Every student knows the stress that comes during the few weeks between fall and winter break. This short time is filled with assignments, tests, projects, and more in an attempt by teachers to cram as much as they can before all the students forget about it over the long break.
To mark the end of this time and to celebrate the break, Stroudsburg is holding the 16th annual Holiday Show. Shari Griswold is going to be organizing the show once again. She also had help from Sarah Cepin, who makes all the music tracks and videos.
While the Holiday Show is a staple tradition for the students, it once was an after-school event. In this older version of this show, it was primarily to showcase the amazing hidden talents of the high school staff. Every year, Mrs. Edwards would amaze the crowd with her amazing voice, but she was missed this year, as she retired at the end of the 2023-2024 school year.
This tradition has changed over the years. Instead of choosing only the talented staff members, it has adapted to the times and showcases the “fun” side of a lot of teachers.
Anthony Lanfrank made his debut on the stage as the host last year, replacing long-time MC, Shawn Thornton. His “dad jokes” were a riot in between acts. This year, he returned to the stage with a book of dad jokes, gifted to him by Mason Gearhart, ‘25.
Adolfo Rodriguez also returned to the stage accompanied by Julia Sobrinkski, ’26, Clair O’Donnell, ’25, and Skip Cassidy with their rendition of “Feliz Navidad.”
Of course, the dancers always wow the crowd. The stunts are always amazing, and this year the dance was humorous as well as impressive. The dancers that performed this year were Sarah Arnold, Nancy Sarti, Suzanne Di Tore, Allison Yonki, Michelle McHale, Kym Brown, Melissa Koehler, Hilary Hakim, Jocelyn Ross, Katrina Bullock, Cepin, Ashley Krause, CJ Hicks, Jen Giordano, Stephanie Foundakos, Emily Vail, Amanda Nicholson and of course Butch Perry! No one will forget him doing a toe-touch jump dressed as Santa.
The teacher’s impression of the students’ TikTok dances was a riot. The whole crowd was laughing the whole time. The TikTok dancers included Nyana Barro, Melissa Haubrich, Emily Vail, Natalie Jennings, Christine Luksic, Jake Cirillo, and Nick Kontos.
The bell choir was an amazing opening performance by Laura Donovan, Jennifer Giordano, Adam Carter, Kevin Nicoles, Anna Goring, Janice Lee, Skip Cassady, Lauren Donovan, Steven Rivera, Ava Ahmetaj, and Marion Logan.
As always, Christine Gangaware amazed everyone with her singing voice while singing “Let It Go.” She was accompanied by Theresa Onody, Skip Cassady, Janice Lee, Wendy Wilson, and Adam Benjamin.
Griswold commented, “This is definitely one of my favorite Stroudsburg traditions, besides moving up day.”
During the first show of two, Jeffery Sodl came on the announcements to announce an early dismissal for the day, garnering the largest applause of all the acts. He also interrupted the second show for a special recognition of upcoming retirees that will be leaving over the break or at the end of the semester. Barb Forth will be leaving over the break, while Tom Burke and Matthew Sobrinski will have their last days on January 17.
Happy Holidays from the Mountaineer Staff!
