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Thursday, March 20, 2008

Estancia Students Excited About Prom in Big City

By Laura Nesbitt
Mountain View Telegraph
    Emily Weidner will not know until the night of the junior-senior prom, April 26, whether all of the junior prom committee's efforts have been successful.
    She will wait to see the smiles on the seniors' faces after they dance to the DJ and enjoy the filet mignon with crab-stuffed jumbo prawns, salad and fresh vegetables.
    This will be the first time in four years that the Estancia High School Junior-Senior Prom, a "black-tie affair," will not be held in Estancia. This year's prom is scheduled at the Hilton in Albuquerque.
    "Last time it was here, it was boring," senior Miguel Losa said about last year's prom.
    "It's not going to be in an old room" in the Estancia Community Center, said Anna Esquibel, a senior.
    "There was a tarp on the wall" that looked drab, said Chelsey Coburn, a senior.
    Because the prom is to be held in Albuquerque this year, it would make it "something different" and special, Losa said.
    And the thanks should all go to the junior sponsors, Melanie Chavez, middle school counselor, and Lucy Lucero, librarian, said Paige Deborski, a junior.
    "Some students don't know what it's like to dress up nice. They don't know what it's like to be at a nice hotel. We wanted the kids to experience that," Lucero said in an interview after a meeting Monday in the high school gym to hand out invitations to all 87 juniors and 60 seniors at Estancia High School, and to answer any final questions.
    Lucero and Chavez started pitching the idea for the prom to be held in Albuquerque at an Estancia School Board meeting in November.
    At first, school board members were not sure a prom in the big city was such a good idea.
    Lucero said one thing that won over the board was emphasizing the safety of the students.
    Juniors and seniors have to abide by certain rules at the formal affair, including no drugs or alcohol, which will be enforced by Torrance County sheriff's deputies who will be on hand to administer sobriety tests. Students must also submit an agreement, signed by their parents, promising that if they leave the prom early, the sponsors will call their parents alerting them of their departure.
    Another selling point for the board was money.
    "It turned out to be less money to have it in Albuquerque," Lucero said. Buying party atmosphere items, such as backdrops, to decorate a room in Estancia was costly, she said, and the party favors would just have to be thrown away.
    Although students might have their parents sign an agreement allowing them to drive themselves home, transportation will also be provided by a limousine service coordinated by Sharalynn Barela's father, Ted.
    The prom is sponsored by the Estancia Police Department, Torrance County Sheriff's Department, Old Mill, Wells Fargo Bank, Blue Ribbon Bar, Margarita's Gallery, Mavericks, J&J Technical Services and Valley Express. Gustin Hardware may contribute closer to the event, Lucero said.
    The junior class prom committee members are Sheila Ness, Victoria Barner, Paige Deborski, Emily Weidner, Sharalynn Barela, Sasha Corral, Mariah Cowan, Deidra Garley, Noel Gonzalez, Martin Gutierrez, Emily Hibbs, Shelby Hopkins, Melissa Moya, Stefan Newsom, Ivonne Orozco and Kaitlyn Taylor.