Nine special Cienega seniors attend prom

For nine seniors, the night had extra meaning. It was the first time most had been to a dance.

They are in a program at Cienega for students with special needs. Although special-education students are allowed to go to school-sponsored events, most don't because they feel intimidated walking into an event alone, said Cienega inclusion specialist Lexi Van de Veer.

That's why she and another inclusion specialist, Stephanie Weber, decided to help the students with their prom plans.

"We'll go as a group, and if they don't want to hang out with us once we get there, that's great; they will have their group of friends there, and they can be with them," Van de Veer said days before the prom.

"A lot of it mainly is a comfort issue," she said. "How many inclusion students are going to want to go by themselves or have the courage to ask someone to go and then go as a couple?"

The teachers asked After Hours Formalwear to donate rental tuxedos for the boys, Costco to donate corsages and boutonnieres and Olive Garden to cover the dinner. The teachers received donations of dresses and money from school staffers and community members to provide the girls with formalwear, shoes and accessories.

After the prom, the donated outfits will go into a "dress pool" that Van de Veer and Weber are starting. The dresses will be available for any senior girl in the future who wants to go to the prom, but can't afford a dress.

On Saturday afternoon the boys — Danny Saville, 18; Shawn Seward, 17; Brian Lee, 19; Matt Winkel, 17; and Michael Harmon, 18 — donned their tuxes at home. Earlier in the week they were at After Hours for their final fittings.

Winkel was the first to show off his tux, which had a long black coat and a pink vest. He'd seen the outfit on display when he was at the shop previously and liked the color combination.

Harmon chose a white tux with a maroon vest and white shoes.

"I don't like black," he said. "I like white."

Harmon had seen the look on television and thought it would be a dapper choice for the prom.

"It was all from the shoes," Van de Veer said. "He's been talking about white tux shoes for weeks. The white tux followed the shoes."

Melinda Francis, manager of After Hours in Park Place mall, helped the boys put together their ensembles.

"They all chose really contemporary tuxes," she said last week during the final fitting.

"This, honestly, has been the highlight of my whole prom (season)," Francis said. "Just to see the joy on their faces when they pick out the tuxes and see how good they look.

"They are going to look very handsome. I'm very excited that they get to go to prom."

While the boys were dressing at their homes, the girls — Toni Beth Stebbins, 20; Kristen Aerts, 17; Maranda Dishong, 18; and Tabetha Conley, 19 — met at Van de Veer's home for help with hair and makeup before getting dressed.

Days before the prom, Aerts was already thinking about the fun she would have at prom, wearing her pretty pink dress.

"I'm really excited about the prom. I'm so thrilled. I'm overjoyed we get to go," she said. "I want to thank the people who are helping us make this happen. If it wasn't for them, we couldn't do it."

Dishong was planning to wear a burgundy and black dress with flower accents and black high heels.

"It's my last year to go to the prom and dance with each other," she said Thursday. "It's going to be fun. The boys will be so cute, and I hope I can find a boy to dance with."

Conley, who speaks with the assistance of a computerized communication device that composes sentences from previously programmed information, said she was eschewing the prom dress tradition in favor of a pantsuit. But the day before the dance she changed her mind and opted for a teal gown.

Conley was excited for the big night because she loves music, but said she was nervous to attend her first prom.

"We're all a little nervous," Aerts said. "It's not every day we get to go to the prom, get dressed up all fancy."

Dishong added, "I'm nervous, but excited to go."

Formalwear, flowers, a nice restaurant — the only thing the students were missing was a limousine.

Van de Veer said they had plenty of offers from car rental companies to provide her students with a free ride, but all of the limos were booked on the night of their prom.

"Unfortunately we're not going look very cool because we have to use district transportation," Van de Veer said. "That's the unglamorous part of the evening — we have to climb out of that."

I'm so thrilled. ... I want to thank the people who are helping us make this happen. If it wasn't for them, we couldn't do it.

Kristen Aerts,

17, Cienega student