By
Niusha Faghih
Arizona Daily Wildcat
71st annual Homecoming parade floats preparing for
As the workload of classes becomes heavier and temperatures begin to drop, University of Arizona sororities and fraternities are preparing to submit floats for the 2000 Homecoming Parade.
The 71st annual parade will begin at 3:30 p.m. Saturday and features student-built floats representing the theme "Breaking New Ground." It will start at the gate at East University Boulevard and North Park Avenue and end at Old Main.
The floats' construction has already begun and will be judged during the parade.
Some of the award categories are the Grand Marshall Award, the Board of Directors Award, Most Spirited First and Second, Most Innovative First and Second and the Bobcat Award, said Ana Terrazas, the editor of the Alumni Association.
Terrazas also added that there are 58 entries for the parade, which consists of floats, cars and bands.
Most of the floats are made out of chicken wire, plywood, tissue paper and other building materials.
Organizations participating in the parade have to sign a contract in which they agree to have at least one fire extinguisher readily available, to keep their floats' width within 10 feet, and to not leave the float once the parade has begun.
Delta Gamma will build a float on their own this year, said Kelley Driscoll, Homecoming chair for Delta Gamma and a journalism sophomore.
"It has been fun," Driscoll said. "We have been working on it for three days, it's been hard, though, because the girls are busy anyway."
What has made it even more difficult is that they are not aided by a fraternity, like many of the other sororities.
"The other houses have guys that have been working on it (the floats) all day," Driscoll added.
Delta Gamma won the Most Spirited award last year when they worked with Sigma Alpha Epsilon, and Driscoll said they hope to win another award this year.
Jeff Markham, Homecoming chair of Sigma Alpha Epsilon and a communications junior, said that they have been working with the Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority since Sunday to build their float.
Envisioned to be a big football with goal posts, their float is hoped to be completed today.
"The guys in the house are going to be dressed up in uniforms on the truck," Markham added.
Sigma Alpha Epsilon is working with Kappa Kappa Gamma because "we haven't worked much with them, and they are cool girls," Markham said.
Chi Omega sorority and Delta Tau Delta fraternity are also working together for the float building.
Nate Carlon, a sociology sophomore, said they began creating a float Monday night with Wilbur the Wildcat wearing a hard hat and holding a jackhammer that moves like it is being drilled into the ground.
Carlon said that Delta Tau Delta is excited to work with Chi Omega.
"They're awesome, we are thrilled to be working with them because they are cooperative and are helping out," he added.
Kim Pennington, a psychology sophomore and the Chi Omega Homecoming chair, said she felt the same way about working with Delta Tau Delta.
"The pledges are awesome," she said. "I know that Delta won two years ago, and we want to win this year."
