Pandemic Prom

FEATURE

pages by Angel Singhal story by Zanna Ingra photos by Baya Burgess

Pandemic Prom

Seniors Kylynn Jackson and Lexi Williams embrace in a hug when first arriving to prom. Williams enjoyed being able to create memories with her friends. “I enjoyed getting all pretty with my friends and dancing with them,” Williams said.

Dancing the night away, senior Madeline Stockdall dances with her friends at their assigned table before hitting the dance floor. Stockdall was very grateful to be able to have a prom. “My favorite thing [about prom] was the chance to do something fun with my friends again before we all separate for college,” Stockdall said. Senior and prom royalty Olivia Toves snaps a photo of her classmates. Seniors Miah Cheatham and Victoria Flores dance the Cha Cha Slide. Cheatham and Flores thought prom was an amazing and memorable night. “I loved seeing so many people genuinely happy and having fun together,” Flores said.

Celebration adapts to COVID-19

Members of the student council worked hard to find a way to make prom special for seniors after a tough year. This included devising a system where students would be placed in “pods” around the commons as a way to keep prom as safe and socially distanced as possible. The verdict? It worked pretty well. “All things considered, I think prom went really well,” senior Addeline Garcia said. “It was probably the most normal school event we’ve had all year.” After multiple tries to find a way to make prom happen, the idea for the pod system came from a StuCo senior’s mother. After it was approved, members of StuCo were able to start planning. “We really wanted to do something special for the class of 2021 and after a lot of our ideas being shut down, when prom got approved it was the best feeling,” StuCo senior Ruthie Mutuku said. The seniors on StuCo were the brains behind the whole operation; StuCo adviser Katy Hayden only stepped in to help during the actual event so that the seniors could enjoy themselves.

“The seniors did it all, I only supported them,” Hayden said. “I helped find chaperones, explained the check in process to them and just walked around checking on things and taking care of things that came up.”

For many seniors, the idea of “pod prom” seemed like beating a dead horse; a last-ditch attempt at creating a sense of normalcy. Senior Olivia Toevs, who was later crowned prom royalty, wasn’t even planning to attend.

“[It was] way better than I could’ve imagined, I originally wasn’t going to go but I bought my tickets last minute on a whim,” Toevs said. “I thought it was so sweet and nostalgic to only have Free State seniors there. StuCo did a phenomenal job making the whole thing special and atmospheric.”

Toevs didn’t expect to be nominated for prom court, and certainly did not plan on being crowned later in the evening.

“In all honesty I didn’t expect it to be me, I was surrounded by my friends and just happy to be there,” Toevs said. “I think I was nervous the split second before they announced it but genuinely I would’ve been just as happy if it was anyone. We had such a fantastic and diverse group of people on the court this year, so I wasn’t very nervous, just excited.”

Hands in the air, seniors dance in the commons during prom. This year prom saw several changes including a rotation of tables to be on and off the dance floor. “[The seniors in student council] fought so hard for this event to be approved by every possible board,” junior StuCo member Sophie Johnston said. “Every senior deserved a chance to dress up and celebrate the last four years.”