Nazareth Students Host 4th Annual Prom For Teens With Disabilities

High school students from Nazareth Academy will be hosting their fourth Prom Night for Teens with Disabilities this March, the school announced in a release.

The tradition, in which each guest with a disability is accompanied by a Nazareth “buddy" for the night, started in 2011, the release states, and the first prom of its kind went off without a hitch in 2012. The idea was inspired by ASPIRE of Illinois and the Nazareth Friends in Service and Hospitality Service Team, but since the first prom, Nazareth’s Campus Ministry Department, the student council and the Helping Hand Center in Countryside have all been heavily involved.

In all, according to the release, more than 100 Nazareth students will be present at the prom as planners, escorts, facilitators and volunteers.

“Everything about that night is focused around our guests and that is what really makes it special,” Maggie Reynolds, a senior at Nazareth and member of the Steering Committee for FISH Prom 2017, said in the release. “I hope our guests have a great time because they deserve a fantastic night. Prom is a rite of passage and every high schooler should have the opportunity to experience a night of their very own.”

Reynolds is joined by seniors Brooke Gawel, Mary Clare Harrington and Maya Vondrasek on the committee that’s planning and carrying out the prom. They’re all a part of the FISH Service Team and have been involved with the Helping Hand Center.

Vondrasek, who was a FISH prom buddy in 2015, is also a co-leader of the Helping Hand Service Team. She said she wanted to help as much as she could with this year’s prom.

“I absolutely loved the experience of being a buddy and wanted to get more involved this year,” she said in the release. “I am devoted to this service project because I believe it truly lives out the Congregation of St. Joseph’s mission of ‘helping the dear neighbor.’”

Like any other high school prom, FISH Prom 2017 will have a theme: St. Patrick’s Day. Guests will enter Springer Hall on a green carpet, the release states, but attire doesn’t necessarily need to be “green”-carpet worthy. Informal or formal dresses, tuxes, ties — it’s all up to the guests what they want to wear.

Prom favors, photos, games, treats and a DJ are also planned for March 11’s event. The prom is slated to start at 7 p.m. and wrap up around 9 p.m.

Harrington said in the release her experiences with FISH and the unique prom experience have inspired her future plans.

“Through this prom and the FISH program overall, I have found my passion for working with those with disabilities and will pursue a physical or occupational therapy degree in college,” she said. “I hope our guests have a wonderful night that is totally catered to their needs and that they feel special.”

Anthony Gonzalez, a social studies teacher at Nazareth and an adult who’s helped coordinate all of the FISH Proms so far, said he was raised by a mom who taught special education and that it’s been close to his heart ever since he was a child. These proms, he said, are special.

“That night, when I see our students come together with our community in such a special way, I like to take a step back and just absorb the moment,” he said in the release. “Their excitement to experience what everyone should reminds me of why I am in education and why I love being involved at Nazareth. No one does it better than we do.”

Register for and learn more about the FISH Prom here.

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Image courtesy of Nazareth Academy