Grade 12 students celebrated their final days of high school at The Grand Luxe on 2 June 2016. Students wish to thank the Prom Committee, along with Ms. Lajeunesse and Ms Collusa, for making Prom possible this year. The slogan for the event was “A Night to Remember,” and was inspired by a Hollywood theme. The Prom Committee wanted students to have a festive night to remember high school by. The doors opened at 6:00 pm, and students remained in the banquet hall until midnight.

This year, early bird tickets were sold for $95. After the early bird period, prices increased by $10, selling for $105. However, student council held a one-day flash sale after all regular sales were complete, selling tickets for $110. All guest tickets were sold for $10 more than the tickets for Garneau students. In total, around 225 tickets were sold.

Soodaba Massoud, SAC’s Grad Convener, had originally promised to lower the price of prom. However, she chose to give students more luxuries, instead of lowering the price.

In accordance to the Hollywood/Red Carpet theme, the awards categories were organized in a fashion similar to the Oscars. Students who won different categories got trophies, and the Prom King and Queen were given crowns. There was an open popcorn bar at 10:30 pm.

At the door, students were greeted by administrative staff (and bouncers), who checked the students’ tickets as well as student IDs. Students who purchased their corsages through the school could pick them up inside the hall.

Before dinner, the graduates had the opportunity to spend time with their friends, and take photos with the backdrop. There was also a photobooth, run by PhotoBooth TO. The photos can be seen on photoboothto.com (access code is Prom2016). Students could dress up in costumes and take a series of photos with their friends. Every student received a printout of the photos.

Dinner consisted of a house salad, a chicken or vegetarian entrée, and a three-part dessert that included a mini lava cake, cheesecake, and crème brulée, followed by the awards and the dance.

This year, Soodaba added several new awards, including the “Best Hair, Hijab, or Hat”. This was done so that all students would be fairly considered for awards.

The awards this year were as follows:

Most likely to win the lottery and then lose their ticket: Lemar Shah

Most likely to be late to their own wedding: Maryam Hasan

Most likely to cure cancer: Gul-e Rana

Most likely to have their own reality show: Christine Mwangi

Best hair, hijab, or hat: Seema Mahida

Best couple: Faizan Amir and Fatima Waheed

Best dressed male: Zain Ahmed

Best dressed female: Aflah Islam

Most humourous: Muneeb Hashimi

In case of emergency, call: Saffiya Lulat

Prom King: Faizan Amir

Prom Queen: Hajra Arif

Hajra Arif was awarded Prom Queen, and in response to hearing her name announced, she said that “I was really shocked. I didn’t think I was going to win it.” She went on to explain that, after she felt the initial reaction, “I was just really thankful to all of my friends, and peers at school.”

This year’s prom ran smoothly. However, leading up to the event, it was difficult for the prom committee to sell tickets. International Show and Spring Fling tickets were being sold at the same time as Prom tickets, discouraging students from purchasing tickets early. As well, this year’s prom tickets could not be subsidized by SAC, due to the school’s limited budget. Fortunately, ticket sales did go up in the last few days, allowing the event to take place.

The students had fun celebrating the end of their high school journey. As Soodaba commented, “This year’s prom was a great way to end off the senior year, and will be a night to remember.”