By Ava Altomare
Since the pandemic hit in 2020, Weir proms have been any- thing but normal due to Covid restrictions, like the mask man- date and social distancing.
Now, in 2022 Covid re- strictions have been lifted, and the Class of 22 is hoping for a “normal” prom.
Class of 2021 graduates Jack which includes the dinner and
McCardel and Ella Dietz, pictured top right, reflected on their prom experience.
McCardel said he had an “awful!” prom experience,saying that the place was tiny and the masks made it bad.
Dietz agreed when it came to the mask mandate. She said, “I disliked having to accommo- date masks into my outfit. Even though I understood why, it just kind of killed the vibe.”
Her favorite part was get- ting ready with the girls, tak- ing pictures and dancing. She also enjoyed the decorations and food, but she wishes they would‘ve taken a charter bus in- stead of a school bus.
The Class of 2022 prom is coming very soon on April 21 at Oglebay, Activities start at 4:30 and run until 10:30 p.m. The DJ for the night is Steve Maffei. There is no mask mandate or so- cial distancing. Tickets cost $30,
dance.
This year’s theme is Starry Night with black, silver, and white decor. The decor will include bal- loons and lights.
The 2022 prom king and queen will be selected by a ran- dom draw. Every senior who at- tends the prom will have their names put in to a bucket and randomly selected.
Wondering how this all started?
Prom began in the mid- late 1800s at colleges and uni- versities, located in the North- east, according to a prom history article in TIME Magazine. “Prom- enade” was created to help with social etiquette.
The first diary entry that mentions prom was in 1894 from a student who attended an all- male college. The all-male school paired with an all-female school to hold a formal dance. Prom eventually made its way to high schools in the late years, and then became popular in America in the 1930s.
Early prom style included pouffy hair, ruffled dresses, silk, satin, and sequins for the girls. For the boys, mullets, lustrous hair, ruffled undershirt, colorful tux, and bow ties.
Today, prom fashion has come a long way with so many different trends for girls and guys. Girls dresses have changed so much, the most popular dress- es now are butterfly cutout dress, one shoulder, sweetheart sequin corset, mini dresses, and many more. Guys now wear more than just black and white suits, now red, blue, are the most popular colors. Wearing sneakers instead of dress shoes is very popular even for girls. What about Weir’s prom history?
Weir’s formal dances date back to at least the early 1950s with a Future Homemakers of America formal and a Y-Teen for- mal. The closest event to a prom was the annual senior dinner and dance held at Williams Country Club in 1953.
Prom became sort of a com- petition during the 1950’s, when it came to prom king and queen, who had the best dressed, and
who had the best date.
In the early days, Weir’s version of a prom queen was May Court, 1953 pictured top right, when members of the court where chosen from each of the four classes. The annual May Day was sponsered by the Girls’ Alth- letic Association and was held in
the Weir High Gym.