In a stroke of fate that must have surely relieved the Foundation and others in the DSC community, the homecoming gods arrived in Daytona this weekend. And on Saturday, they must have invited Helios to town. For a weekend in which forecasts showed a 55% to 75% chance of rain, the only water that seemed to be in sight was the Dunk Tank at the Family Friendly Tailgate Party at Daytona State Stadium, until early Saturday evening.
This year, hundreds came to listen to the live DJ, see Freddie the Falcon, play cornhole, enjoy the free hot dogs and hamburgers, and get temporary tattoos and free haircuts, the latter courtesy of the School of Cosmetology and Barbering.
First-year freshman softball player Shelise Johnson enjoyed her first Homecoming as a participant in the Alumni Baseball/Softball game at the Halifax Health Softball Stadium earlier that morning.
“It was fun,” Johnson said. “I had fun getting with my teammates and having a good time.”
In addition to the athletic teams partaking in the festivities, Homecoming Sports: A Picture Story, various student clubs like WISE (Women in Science and Engineering), the Science Club, and Sigma Beta Delta, the international business honor society, turned out.
Solmaire Cabarcas, a fourth-year BAS student with a concentration in hospitality, has enjoyed Homecoming since arriving to Daytona State last year as a transfer student from Lake Technical College in Eustis.
“I love it,” she said. “I will miss it, the games, the food, the environment. I just love it.”
While not all of the participants were involved in the fun and games, there were those who appreciated the atmosphere and experience. Isaac Murraine, a first-year student in the massage therapy program, and his classmates were offering attendees free massages at the Tailgate party.
Studying to be a psychiatrist, Murraine hopes to use the knowledge he gains in the program to help others heal holistically, physically, and mentally. Homecoming was the first opportunity that he and his classmates had to practice on individuals in the public sphere.
“I got a lot of positive feedback,” he said. “It was the first time we got to work with people with different [body types]. One person even tried to tip me.”
Madison Phillips, a returning student in her first year in the massage therapy program, relished the moment.
“It was nerve-wracking at first, but eventually, it was thrilling and exciting,” she said.
She hopes to one day open her own practice in the Ormond Beach area. Currently, she is taking six classes, all with the same professor.
“Ms. Kat, she’s great,” Phillips said. “I don’t know if I am allowed to say this, but she is awesome.”
Ms. Kat is Katherine Jankowski, a licensed massage therapist and the Assistant Chair of the School of Health Careers at DSC. Jankowski herself came through the program in 2013 after working as a chef for 25 years and breaking her leg. Upon finishing the program in 2017, she worked as an adjunct until 2020, when she took over the massage therapy program.
As the beneficiary of physical therapy during rehab, she understands the importance of therapy in the healing process. “This is where people change lives,” she said.
While she and her students participate in 20 to 30 events per year, she is very selective about the events that they do. Homecoming is one event that allows the students to learn quickly whether they are doing well or not.
“I like to throw them [the students] in the fire, to let them figure it out,” Jankowski said. “If something comes up, I can be there to help them resolve it.”