Written by Hillary Tran (Class of 2023)
Photography by Thuy Nguyen (Class of 2022)
Video by Amy Liu (Class of 2023)

On December 15th, the last day before Winter Break, the juniors hosted the annual Winter Banquet in Wonderful Words Hall, where elementary and high school students spent two hours watching performances, eating delicious food, and of course, social distancing from each other.

The holiday spirit had been invited into the hall: streamers adorned the walls, colorful lights brightened the atmosphere, and a tree embellished with ornaments served as a final flourish. On the side, a table was piled with delicious dishes for everyone to enjoy. Through the hard work of Heng Dzu Shr, the Kitchen Staff, teachers, and students, a warm and hearty winter meal had been prepared, with offerings of carrot soup, potato salad, sushi, cheesecake, and mac and cheese.

The juniors kicked off the Christmas Banquet with a game of “Guess the Holiday Song.” Classic carols were played into the speakers and the two teams—in this case, elementary vs. high school—tried to name the songs first. In the end, the teams emerged with a tie. Then came the highly-anticipated performances. Bright voices filled the hall as festive renditions of songs including “Rudolph the Red-nose Reindeer,” “Jingle Bell Rock,” “Riptide,” “夜空中最亮的星 (Brightest Star in the Night Sky),” “Mistletoe,” “Hallelujah,” and “It’s Beginning To Look a Lot Like Christmas.”

To close off the performances, the DVGS band performed “All I Want for Christmas Is You.” At one point, Santa unexpectedly came bursting into the hall, tossing candy and other delicious sweets to the elementary students!

As winter continues on, make sure your loved ones are staying warm and putting on extra layers and N95 masks. We hope everyone enjoyed the festivities. Happy Winter!