With the Class of 2021 graduating in just a few short weeks, end-of-the-year senior traditions, like Prom, have not been able to be celebrated in a traditional way due to the ongoing pandemic. 

Rather than just canceling the night all together, on Saturday, April 24, the Class of 2021 gathered together in Wildcat 1 to celebrate a Senior Dinner event. This night that was put on by the Senior Class Board, Junior Class Board and Post Prom parents. 

“Planning for this event was a pretty lengthy process,” Senior Class Board Vice President Mae Killeen said. “The last two weeks leading up to the event was the busiest. The Senior Class Board met every week to think through the whole night and prepare everything for the night.”

Multiple committees came together to plan to give these students the opportunity to bond together and celebrate one another before they go their separate ways. 

The night started out with a dinner catered in from Mangia Italiana. Then, members of the Senior Class Board alternated between announcing superlatives and raffle prize winners.

Between groupings of announcements, one act performed for the rest of the class. For seniors Milina Mike and Dakota Horrocks, they chose to sing “For Good” from the movie, Wicked.

“Singing with my best friend was an incredible experience,” senior Milina Mike said. “It’s an opportunity that not many people get, and I felt very humbled that I was able to. The song we chose was a tradition for us to sing considering that multiple people we have looked up to in high school have sung it to the rest of the class. It felt good to see our classmates cheering for us.”

Other students that displayed their musical talents included Ahnysia Jackson singing her original song, “Suffocation,” Zane Petersen singing “Chasing Cars” and Dominic Zohlen playing the piano and singing “Lost in Japan.” 

After the student performances, everyone gathered in the auditorium for a hypnotist show that is traditionally at Post Prom. Student volunteers went on stage, while others participated in their seats. During this time, students were put into a state of sleep and relaxation by focusing on their breathing and loosening their body. Some volunteers were deep in the hypnosis stage and participated in bizarre activities such as painting their toenails and yelling at the audience to be quiet. 

Shortly after, royalty was announced, and Thomas Bigler and Mae Killeen were crowned as Prom King and Queen.

“It’s such a great feeling to know that I was voted by my peers,” Bigler said. “I was so excited to be on royalty in the first place and being voted king just added another level of excitement.”

The night came to an end with a slideshow created by a Senior Class Board member displaying photos of memories that students sent in from throughout their time at West over the last four years.

With this special once a year event, students hope to be able to have a more traditional setting in the upcoming years.

“My hopes for next year are for a return to more normalcy,” Senior Class Board sponsor Dana Blakely said. “I would like to see the Senior Dinner return as a unique event that celebrates our graduates, and I hope for a Prom that again includes both juniors and seniors and the ability to bring dates. With that being said, I loved the event this year. It was historic — a unique solution for a strange year.”

As the year wraps up, the Class of 2021 finds an ounce of normalcy within their senior year through this Prom event. They continue to prepare for the beginning of their next chapter in life as this one comes to an end after graduation.