All the way back in 1865, Harvard University’s baseball team was the first to ever sew the large letter onto their uniforms and spark the iconic journey of the lettermen jacket. 

As monumental pieces awarded to achieving students, letterman jackets have been praised and passed down from generation to generation. How great would it be to bring back the tradition of being able to walk down the halls and see the different patches neatly stitched onto jackets that speak a thousand words? However, I wouldn’t be surprised if this generation didn’t even know what a letterman jacket was. 

In the 1973 Ballard High School yearbook there are photos of students proudly wearing their letterman jackets with the big “B” on the front. The jackets were a pleasant tradition where varsity student athletes displayed their achievements and awards on and off the field throughout the season. Some might say they were a motivation to reach high athletic performance and sparked involvement. 

Brynn Cziesla, a varsity student athlete at Ballard, describes the significance of this lost tradition. “Letterman jackets are crucial to highschool life,” Czielsa said, “as a student athlete I wish I had a letterman jacket to show off my stylish and cool school spirit.”

Letterman jackets are a staple in American fashion however, these jackets are slowly fading from society and there is a simple reason why. Cost and school involvement is turning people away. The thought of letterman jackets being too expensive or wasteful defeats the purpose of school spirit. Letterman jackets are not a money luring scheme. Instead, they are monumental, priceless items that last for many generations and are a great way to spark much-needed school spirit that has been lacking for some time. That is why here at BHS we should band together to bring back school spirit, starting off with the reintroduction of the letterman jackets to varsity sports.