Every grad deserves a banquet
If I were a high school student in the Regina Public School system, I would be as upset as the dickens, and I too would be signing a petition of protest. In case the news item was missed, Regina’s public school officials have deemed, in their collective wisdom, that Grade 12 graduation banquets will be cancelled. Period. No discussion. No consultation. No chance to brainstorm ideas. Nope, there’s no democracy in that school system. According to the scant information available, it appears the cost of the banquets was the main reason for their termination. Costs of the roast beef or turkey had apparently increased so much that some students’ families could not afford to attend. So in the spirit of consumer equality, all shall be equal and no one will have a grad banquet. Of course the students, who weren’t previously consulted, rose in protest and soon petitions were being signed throughout the city. Students want their graduation banquets, parents want their children to have the traditional gala events. And the students themselves indicated a willingness to fundraise and seek sponsorships so all their peers would be able to attend. So far there’s been no word from the banquet cancellation group. Thinking back several decades to my class graduation plans, it was a long-standing tradition that every Grade 12 class would sit down together with parents, invited guests and escorts to enjoy a turkey supper cooked by the United Church Women of the three main communities serviced by the school. It was also tradition that the Grade 11 class would help serve the dinner, taking full and empty bowls and platters back and forth from kitchen to tables. Grade 11 students were also in charge of moving tables and chairs off the dance floor, and we helped wash and dry the dishes. This activity gave us a front row seat to see what we liked and wanted to do differently for our own banquet. No one ever questioned the wisdom of the banquet. In that decade, the banquet was the school’s social occasion of the year. We had no cap and gown celebration so the banquet was the main event, complete with speeches, dance, fancy long gowns, new suits and pouffy hairdos. My class, if my memory serves me correctly, was 32 strong, a large one that nicely filled the stage for the after-banquet photos. We invited former teachers to attend, we included the school division trustees and spouses on the guest list, and for the first time ever, all the school bus drivers and their spouses were part of the celebration. They all attended to share in our evening of achievement. We were all so proud of our once-a-year spiffiness and photos of that class and those before and after in their finery still grace the school corridors, documenting a tradition that has not been put asunder by officials in charge of that school. While prices of such events back then were much less, our class held bake sales, candy sales, sold milk at lunch time, and gratefully accepted donations from community members to help pay the expenses for our night. So I say good luck to the students in Regina who want their banquet. Going without a grad banquet would have been a sour pill for us to swallow decades ago, It won’t digest any better all those years later.
Joyce Walter can be reached at ronjoy@sasktel.net