Blackjack dealer Max Garner waits as Jordan Atwood and Emmett Dawson contemplate their next move at the Blackjack table. Hundreds of dollars in merchandise and gift certificates were donated by local businesses and individuals as prizes for the casino games played during the after-prom party.

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Getting together for a photo op at prom are Berkleigh Pafford (l-r), Sponsor Laura Green, Julianna Schiele, Dawson Bingham, Brooke Offe and Shelbie Bowen.

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“Careful with that pin!” Layla Noggle pins a corsage on Mason Collar’s coat before heading to the Guernsey-Sunrise prom.

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GUERNSEY—With a backdrop of a formal masquerade party motif, Guernsey-Sunrise held their junior-senior prom on Saturday, April 13th at the high school. Students spent several days transforming areas of the school with elegant decorations to set the scene. It is a night to dress up, dance and celebrate the final days of a senior year at one of the most memorable events of high school.

The evening began with a dinner of Chicken Alfredo, served up by the junior class parents.

The highlight of the evening was the Grand March processional, held in the east gymnasium. Parents, faculty and the public were invited to bear witness as the attendees were individually announced and traversed a carpet of red under a canopy of white lights. This year’s royalty included Princess Brooke Sterner, Prince Isaac CdeBaca, Queen Riley Thompson and King Aidan Noggle. 

Two hours of music for the dance was provided by Justin Herdt’s DJ Majik.

Following the dance, the after-prom party was held in the commons area. Volunteers from the community assumed the role of casino workers to run a variety of card and dice games where attendees could earn money redeemable for a host of prizes donated by local businesses and individuals.

The tradition of prom (short for promenade or a formal march) dates back to the late 1800s and early 1900s when universities in the northeast part of the United States held these formal events intended to teach manners and etiquette. As the event became more popular, it evolved into the basic format we know now and high schools began to hold them each spring.

In the ‘70s and ‘80s, many schools added “after-prom” party lock-ins at the school to reduce the increasing issue of underage drinking and driving that often marred an otherwise positive event. Lock-ins give parents an assurance that their student is safe and sober and allows kids to continue the evening with their friends without the peer pressure to drink or ride with someone who has been. It has had a substantial impact on the number of accidents which seemed to be an inevitable occurrence across the nation.

Over the years, prom has seen changes in styles, level of formality and music, but it has endured and remained one of the most anticipated events of a high school senior year.