For the past seven years, excluding 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Students Assisting in Good Endeavors (SAGE) has topped the charts of the West Texas A&M University Homecoming parade.

This year the title for first place went to Phi Delta Theta and Chi Omega, second place went to Kappa Alpha and Delta Zeta and third place went to Alpha Tau Omega and Zeta Tau Alpha. However, SAGE did win the People’s Choice award as they had the previous seven Homecomings.

“All parade entries should be decorated in keeping with the Homecoming theme, The Roaring ’20s,” as stated in the universities 2021 parade participant guidelines. The maximum dimensions are “eight feet in width, 11 feet in height from the ground and 35 feet in length including the vehicle pulling the float.”

These dimensions are meant to level the playing field for other organizations to compete and make it safe for the float attendees and the people on the float. The judging of the floats is decided upon the “creativity, adherence to theme, craftsmanship, school spirit, overall appearance and enthusiasm.”

“There definitely have been members that have exceeded that. Quite a few people have really shown up through helping build [and] order designs to really have put their all on the field,” said Julia Wasson, health science major and SAGE member. “SAGE has a cool legacy of really going all out for our float because we love to be teachers, it’s a really fun way to be.”

SAGE’s 2021 float consisted of a route 66 sign, a city and “then of course we always have to include Bucky, our lovely mascot,” Wasson said.

One worry with floats is the high speed of winds. Living in the panhandle gives the floats trouble. The float for SAGE is entirely pomped. Pomping is when you place stuffed tissue paper or other paper-like material with the help of glue in holes, such as chicken wire, to give it a fully fluffed appearance. Making sure that the pomped tissue paper stays in the holes is a worry, especially if there is a need to bring the float from a long distance.

In previous years, the organization’s float height has been taller, as SAGE’s 2018 float was a WTAMU approach on Tex Randall, the tall skinny cowboy on Highway 60 headed out of Canyon. SAGE’s floats have always been something else, with members spending hours upon hours prepping the float for public display.

“I spent about eight but I know Julia among others and fit like about 14 plus,” said Ailyn Canava, biology pre optometry major and SAGE member.

SAGE’s excellence relies on the members to achieve the success of receiving the cash prize of $300 for first place, $200 for second place and $100 for third place. This year, they may have fallen, but next year, campus student organizations better be prepared for SAGE’s renewed creative ideas for the 2022 Homecoming parade.