The tuxedos, the hair appointments, hours of choosing the perfect dress. This is the prom that juniors and seniors did not have in Spring 2020, and almost didn’t have in Spring 2021.

In September 2020, with the Covid-19 cases still at its peak, homecoming was canceled. Months later, with hybrid learning, guidelines being a little more flexible, and the vaccine being distributed, many hoped there would be a prom.

By March 2021, most of the counties in Maryland, including Frederick County opted to cancel because it’s nearly impossible to guarantee safely.  The reasons are obvious–prom takes months of planning, securing a venue, decorations, music and more.  It was impossible for staff to commit the money with questions about safety and a spring rise in cases on the horizon.

Although Linganore High School Principal, Cindy Hanlon, did not make the prom decision, most of the celebrations related to the senior class have to be communicated through her. She receives requests and questions from groups daily.

“It doesn’t feel awesome to be the person to say ‘no.’ Certainly I try to be as creative as I can, but in these circumstances, we couldn’t do it,” said Principal Cindy Hanlon.

Shortly after this decision was made, a handful of senior moms got together to organize and plan their own prom–not associated with the school. Led by Lisa Haskins and Maryanne Thompson, who both have senior daughters, they began to ask friends to get involved.

“Our seniors have already missed their junior prom and senior homecoming. In my mind, if we could do it within state guidelines, it was going to happen with or without the school participation,” said Haskins. “As parents, we couldn’t sit by and watch our kids miss out on one more memory.”

To prepare, the moms started to raise money to pay for the event’s expenses. So far, they’ve held several fundraisers for the prom and some specific for the Class of 2021 graduation expenses.

“Specific to prom, we did an ‘Egg My House’ fundraiser and a Facebook fundraiser. The Egg My House fundraiser was by far the most successful!” said Haskins. “We sold candy filled eggs by the dozen and then hid them in the participant’s front lawn the evening before Easter. We ended up with 232 orders, filling 8,268 eggs and had 33 Easter Bunny Teams that delivered the orders.”

Since this idea revolved around one group of moms and one group of teen sons and daughters, contacting the whole senior class to participate in their prom was definitely a challenge. So far, they’ve contacted the students through Facebook groups, school emails, their kids’ connections with friends, and announcements on the school website. Haskins and Thompson made many efforts to accommodate everyone.

“Maryanne Thompson initially planned to sell prom tickets on three days, but after a few requests, she added two additional days to make sure as many seniors that wanted to come could buy a ticket,” said Haskins. “She also made it clear that if there were students that could not afford to purchase a ticket, they would be accommodated. We don’t want anyone left out.”

Juniors, who traditionally attend the high school prom, will have to wait until next year for the chance to dance. This will reduce the overall number of participants.

To determine the cost of each prom ticket, Haskins and Thompson asked former students and SGA members what a typical prom has cost in past years. While considering the expenses they needed to make the event fun and still being reasonable with how much each senior should spend, the final cost for each ticket was $30.00.

As for the venue, Thompson reached out to Gaver Farm to ask if the prom could be held there. The owners approved the request and the venue was decided.

“The venue is local for LHS seniors, so they don’t have to drive too far. Many seniors have worked for the Gavers or visited their farm over the years, so I thought it would be a spot known by everyone that might already hold some fun memories,” said Thompson. “The Gaver Family has been wonderful and wanted to give back to their community. Even before the county cancelled the proms, I had discussed the idea with the Gavers as a Plan B, just in case, and they agreed to pencil us in.”  The Gaver family has two generations of LHS alumni.

Choosing a venue that would accommodate the safety guidelines that come with Covid was very important.

“The barn is gorgeous inside, very spacious, and can be an open air venue,” said Thompson. “The ability to spread out, be open air, and the option to be part outside ensures we have plenty of social distancing and follow all the guidelines.”

From a perspective of a parent who isn’t close friends with the organizers of this event, it can be tough to allow your kid to go to an event not associated with the school. Mrs. Haskins made it very clear that her goal for this event, although not sponsored by the school, is to provide a safe place for students.

“There will be plenty of parent chaperones throughout the night. We also plan to have every student and guest sign a waiver, agreeing to follow the venue rules, as well as Covid protocols,” said Haskins.

Chosen by the senior class, the theme of the prom is Northern Lights!

“We are planning on having the traditional prom King and Queen!” said Thompson. “We are keeping it simple and focusing on the fun, such as DJ, Northern Lights display, photo booth, and door prizes!”

Senior Jordan Webb said, “I felt really excited when I heard about this event because although prom wasn’t a big deal to me, it was good to know that we were going to have a somewhat normal moment of senior year. To Mrs. Haskins and Mrs. Thompson, thank you for working so hard to making this as normal of a senior year as possible for our class!”