Ask most Temple students what the senior prom is and you’ll most likely get a response close to that of sophomore Erica Davis, “They have a senior prom?”
Before Homecoming week jumped off for most Temple students, the Temple Student Government, Student Activities, Deja Vu and the Homecoming Committee held their annual senior prom on Sunday, Oct. 6.
Ladies and gents arrived in their best outfits dressed to impress and the music was pumpin’.
Excitement was in the air as the partygoers arrived not knowing what to expect.
Food awaited them and the DJ was ready to take requests.
But this wasn’t your typical senior prom.
One look around the room and any passerby could see there was something different about the crowd.
The room wasn’t crowded with TU seniors celebrating the end of their university life, instead this event was for the senior citizens of the community.
Invitations were sent out to community centers and nursing homes to request the presence of all interested seniors.
The event, which was started three years ago, was designed as an attempt to interact with the seniors of the community, who are often times overlooked.
On a campus such as Temple and an area surrounded by hormone raging youth, it is fairly easy to forget about older adults.
While students have homecoming week to look forward to, the senior prom was intended to be an event that a usually ignored can remember for years to come.
This prom wasn’t much different from a typical prom.
There was food, fun and plenty of pictures.
As with any social gathering there was some hesitation when it came to getting couples on the dance floor, but one couple broke the ice by sharing a slow dance together.
Most of the seniors loosened up and were able to be coaxed on the dance floor when the familiar sound of the electric slide came on.
A few brave seniors even grooved to the Cha Cha slide.
The event even concluded with the familiar scene of the crowning of prom king and queen and photos for the seniors to remember their special afternoon.
Mary Elizabeth Johnson came out just to have “something to do” for the day.
So, in some ways the seniors resembled Temple students looking for something free to do on a Friday night.
However, there were some obvious differences between this senior prom and a prom full of teens.
Instead of the DJ spinning the latest tunes, the sounds of Marvin Gaye and Al Green had the seniors tapping their feet and bobbing their heads.
The seniors reminisced with songs that most students would condider classics.
Although Temple students may be oblivious to the senior prom, the seniors of the community have been remembered by a few who took the time out to ensure that a good time was had by all regardless of age.
Patrice Williams can be reached at temple_news@hotmail.com
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