Based on a host of stories in the media about teens today, one could come to the conclusion that the teenage generation is totally self-absorbed and clueless about the lives of others. Then something happens to change your mind.
One of the highlights of the high school years is getting to go to the prom. Juniors and seniors start making plans in January for the spring event. Everything from dresses and hairstyles to tux color, transportation and where to eat dinner take priority over other things parents may deem more important, like studying.
But, hey, it’s a rite of passage and a big deal.
Some seniors from Foothill High School in Henderson, Nev., came up with an out-of-the-ordinary plan for prom this year. Instead of focusing on themselves and going to prom with their dream date, they decided to focus on a group of people who were unlikely to be invited to the prom. They approached Rae McAnlis, the school’s special education facilitator and asked for assistance.
“Meagan Baker and a friend [told me] that they and some of their friends wanted to ask seniors who had special needs to be their dates to the prom,” said McAnlis. “I was 100 percent on board with the idea, but wanted to make sure our parents would be comfortable with the plan. After getting the parents’ sign-off, the seniors went to work hatching their plan.”
Kali Grinder’s boyfriend, Marc, had turned down an earlier request from Cassidy Cooper to accompany her to the prom because he already had a date. When Kali found out, she decided she should share him with Cassidy, and they could all go to the prom together. Cassidy was very surprised when Marc asked her if she would go with them.
Meagan Baker had become friends with Ben Bunker, who uses a wheelchair due to a disabling spinal column tumor. She actually spread rose petals down a wheelchair ramp and waited at the end of the ramp for Ben to come down where she knelt down and handed him a piece of paper asking him to go to the prom with her.
“Three years ago our principal made the decision to include special-needs students in regular classrooms,” said McAnlis. “It has really made a difference and could have been the catalyst for our seniors wanting to make sure the super seniors were included. Instead of being separated on opposite ends of the school, our students all know each other. Prom was a win for everybody involved. The smiles on people’s faces said it all.”
It is highly likely that it wasn’t just the lives of Ben, Cassidy and the other special-needs students that were changed that night. There is something about living beyond yourself that has a way of changing people at their core.
These students set out to bless the lives of others and create memories that will last a lifetime, but there’s a really good chance that they also received a blessing.
Email Julie Baumgardner, president and executive director of First Things First, at julieb@firstthings.org.