COUNTDOWN TO GRADUATION: A continuing series that looks at some of the issues that face graduating high school seniors and their families.
By: Melissa Morgan
South Brunswick High School students say the senior prom means much more than limousine rides and manicured nails.
"I’ve always wanted to go to my senior prom," said Jesse Fyffe about the importance of this event. "You have to go because it gives you a chance to see everyone you might never see again."
"It was great to see all of my friends I don’t see on a daily basis all in one big room," said Shawna Koci. "I hung out with friends I’ve had since eighth grade."
Jesse and Shawna went to the senior prom together, as friends, last Saturday evening at the New Brunswick Hyatt.
But whether members of the Class of 2002 went with significant others, as friends or solo, many claimed the best part of the infamous end-of-the-year dance was hanging out with the graduating class for one of the last times before receiving their diplomas.
Even though Shawna attended two other proms, she said she had the best time at the senior dance spending time with a group that included 18 couples. She decided at the beginning of high school that she would go to the dance and hoped to get a date even though many of her friends were going alone.
Before Jesse popped the prom question in March, she already had made appointments to get her hair and nails done. Once she agreed to go with Jesse, Shawna said picking a dress became her next challenge. Selecting the perfect one took a total of four April weekends.
"Some people had dresses since January and February," she said. "It was nice to see everyone dressed up, but for me it was no big deal. I’d rather be in jeans and a tank top."
Instead of getting dressed up herself, Shawna said she really enjoyed seeing her male friends in their best attire.
"Most of the guys come to school looking like they just got out of bed, so it was nice to see them dressed up," she said.
Jesse said looking good only took a matter of seconds.
"To get ready, all I did was throw on my tux," he said.
Shawna spent her time before the prom trying to organize group pictures for all of her friends.
Once they got to the actual event, Jesse and Shawna said they relaxed a little and had a great time.
"It is the easiest to go with a friend," Shawna said. "You can dance with anybody you want and don’t have to worry about your boyfriend or girlfriend."
However, both Shawna and Jesse said that they wouldn’t have attended the dance without a date. If Jesse didn’t ask Shawna, she said she would have eventually asked him herself.
"Most guys are so lazy," she said. "They will ask a week before because most don’t have a sense of the preparation."
Senior Vicki Pasigos didn’t have a date for the prom, and she said that going alone made the evening even better.
Instead of relying on a date as her final decision to go, Vicki found a dress she loved in one trip to the store and decided she couldn’t pass up wearing it to the prom.
"I didn’t feel pressure to have a date at all," she said. "A lot of people were going by themselves, and I think I had just as much fun."
Though Vicki enjoyed the dance and taking pictures with all of her friends, she was a little disappointed after hearing all the hype about the prom.
"It was just like a Sweet 16 dance," she said. "Some people go overboard with it. I think the senior trip will be better than the prom."
Saba Rathore also said she thinks some people make a bigger deal than they should about the dance. Since her Muslim religion forbids her to be alone with a male before marriage, she decided to skip the prom. Instead, Saba said she will remember things like being co-captain of the girls lacrosse team as the best memories of senior year.
"In the beginning, a lot of my friends were confused about why I wasn’t going, but after I explained, they understood," she said.
Saba said it would have been nice to go, but choosing not to wasn’t a hard decision.
"I have a really strong religious and family background," she said. "I was brought up in a setting where things like this aren’t a big deal. I did miss going out with my friends, but I’m not the kind of person that gets excited about things like a dress and hair."
For Michael Herman, the prom was a big deal. He said the dance gave him an opportunity to spend time with his girlfriend of six months.
"I knew I wanted to go for a long time," he said. "The best part was being in a fancy atmosphere with her and seeing her dressed up. She looked like an angel."
Even if Michael didn’t have a serious girlfriend, he said the prom still would have been important.
"I would have regretted missing it, but that would have never happened," he said. "I would have never thought of not going."
Shawna agreed.
"I didn’t expect much because I was so busy being stressed about it," she said. "I think I put more pressure on myself than anyone else did. You can’t miss the prom. Not going would be like not going to graduation."