Now that the Prom is over...

I can breathe again! As junior class advisor, it fell to me to coordinate the planning of the prom this year. After three weddings, as I told the committee, a prom is a "bunt." Actually, it turned out to be a lot of work! We had a fabulous prom on May 7 at the West Shore Country Club. My prom committee did a great job of planning, decorating, and encouraging students to attend. We had 360 kids there. Here are a few pictures from the event.

Let me tell you about this last picture... Michael is a student in the junior class and as his advisor, I took it upon myself to see that he was able to attend the prom. He and his mom live at the poverty level with all his medical expenses.

Michael has a very rare vascular disease and was recently featured on a National Geographic special on blood. He is completely wheel chair bound and only comes to school for one class a day. He has doctors in Boston and Hershey that he visits regularly, has routine blood transfusions and three chlorine baths a day to keep his skin from getting infected. No one ever thought he would live to see a junior-senior prom. He has a friend in Pittsburgh with the same disease, although Amiee's is not as advanced.

After finding out that Michael wanted to come to prom, I arranged for a tuxedo for him, got his girlfriend approved as a guest (routine for anyone not from our school), and arranged transportation with the school wheelchair accessible van. Amiee's parents brought her from Pittsburgh.

I have never seen Michael so happy - in all the years I have known him. It made the entire prom a very special event. His mother cried most of the evening with tears of joy. Amiee's parents took pictures and kept a close eye on her (she also has a bad heart). This may be her only chance to attend a prom.