Project Graduation Party Caps Eventful Day for Wellington High School’s Graduating Seniors; Nearly 300 attend all-night party
“We were all tired; but it was a good tired, because we knew where our children were all night, and that they all made it home safely the next morning.” ~ Event co-chair Susanne Bennett
Wellington, FL (May 24, 2012) – On Monday, May 21, following the biggest day in their high school careers, nearly 300 graduating seniors from Wellington High School enjoyed an all-night party at the Village Park Gym at Pierson Park. The event, dubbed “PROJECT GRADUATION,” was an attempt by event organizers to “give the seniors a safe place to let off some steam and celebrate their big day,” said event co-chair Susanne Bennett.
The impetus for the evening can be found in some very sobering statistics, added Bennett: “Unfortunately, each April and May, teenage alcohol and drug-related accident fatalities spike – in big part as a result of unsupervised graduation celebrations gone bad.” The parent-supervised, all-night, alcohol-free/drug-free party was the committee’s attempt “to combat those scary accident statistics,” added Bennett.
The PROJECT GRADUATION party started at around 10:00pm on graduation night and the fun continued until after 5:00am. Graduates were entertained all night by a DJ, huge inflatable games and rides, a hypnotist, casino games and much more. Food and drinks were served throughout the night, and students were given raffle tickets, which were used to vie for a number of prizes, including bicycles, dorm-sized refrigerators, televisions and other items that will come in handy as the students make the transition from high school to college, the military or the workforce.
“This event was a huge undertaking,” said Bennett, “and it would not have been possible without the tireless efforts of dozens of volunteers. Our hats are off to everyone who helped make this event possible.”
VOLUNTEERS NEEDED TO HELP PLAN AND ORGANIZE PROJECT GRADUATION 2013
“At a cost of around $20,000, PROJECT GRADUATION does not happen all by itself,” said Bennett. “Fundraisers are an important part of the planning process, and the time to start is now,” she added. For the 2012 event, fundraisers included a first-ever golf tournament, which brought in around $8,000. “That was a tremendous way to kick things off,” said Bennett. The committee held a variety of events around the area to help raise additional funds, “and those events take time to plan,” she added.
As has been the tradition, the 2012 planning committee will now hand the reins to a new group of volunteers whose children will be part of the 2013 graduating class at Wellington High School . “We have a logo, which was created by a local marketing company for 2013 and beyond. We have a wealth of information and documentation that will help the new group get off to a fast start. We just need to hear from someone who is willing to step in and take the lead on this,” said Bennett.
Anyone interested in “taking the ball and running with it,” should contact the 2012 committee via email at . “We won’t dump everything on you,” said Bennett. “Members of this year’s committee will be happy to meet with the new group to point you in the right direction and answer any questions you might have.” Bennett said that following the event, “We were all tired; but it was a good tired, because we knew where our children were all night, and that they all made it home safely the next morning.”
