Prom 2022: Promiracle

Everyone has heard of a Promposal — the trend of coming up with a creative and perhaps extravagant method of asking your date to the prom — but last weekend, Newcastle students, parents and staff pulled off a Promiracle. 
For the first time in my tenure at Newcastle High School, the prom venue was set for the Flying V this year. As such, the junior class, along with their parents, spent the first few days of last week decorating the historic place in anticipation of the night.
Then Mother Nature threw a monkey wrench into the works.
The weathermen began forecasting a doozy of a spring snowstorm for Saturday, so the powers-that-be met on Thursday morning, and after hours of brainstorming determined that prom would still take place on Saturday.
The decision was not an easy one, however, in the end it was the money that would be lost on rented tuxedos and already purchased flowers that was the deciding factor.
With forecasted snowfall totals of 8-16 inches possible, it was clear that a venue change was in order, therefore at noon on Thursday, the news came down that the dance would be moving from the V to the Dome. 
Not an easy feat.
Having decorated for prom a few times, I was overwhelmed at the thought of getting the Dome, the foyer and the auditorium ready in a day and a half, and I wasn’t even involved in the decorating!
But, it was all hands on deck to get it accomplished. Administrators and parents were on getting up to the V on Thursday afternoon to take down the decorations and transport those to the school. 
People were on the horn rounding up leftover decor from Sundance who graciously offered to share any items we could use as they just held their prom last week.
Parents, students and staff worked Thursday evening and through the day on Friday to transform the venues from a stage, an entry, and a gym into a prom wonderland. 
I had all of my juniors on Friday, and my classroom was nearly empty all day as students pitched in to get the work done, and I even saw seniors working to pull it off.
At the end of the day on Friday, I got to take a walk through to get a sneak peak at how things were coming, and I was floored with what they all had accomplished in so little time.
The Dome was no longer a gym, but rather a park with sparkling lights, complete with a backyard barbecue space for kids to hang out if they didn’t want to be on the dance floor.
There was a beautiful picture backdrop in the foyer, and the auditorium was all fancied up for grand march and coronation. 
After getting over my shock of how much had been accomplished in a blink of an eye, my next thought was that it looked just as good, or maybe even better, than years when there was a full week devoted to decorating.
It was a prom miracle!
I was so happy that what was shaping up to be a disaster was suddenly averted, and that the kids who had been so looking forward to the night and had planned for it to be amazing, wouldn’t be disappointed.
It turned out to be a cold and snowy, but wonderful night for the kids. Everyone involved should give themselves a pat on the back, because they did good for the kids by pulling off a Promiracle.