Students enjoy prom after all

Students at Marion L. Steele High School in Amherst celebrated with an in-person prom June 18 because of the generosity of the community.

Thanks to a donor who wished to remain anonymous, the students were able to gather at the Antler’s Ballroom in Lorain to honor an annual tradition.

Steele was among high schools across the region to cancel in-person proms and graduation ceremonies due to the novel coronavirus pandemic, which has severely limited in-person interactions.

However, despite being the middle of summer, the students were able to get their celebration.

Co-organizer Trish Veard, whose daughter Regan Veard is part of the graduating class of 2020, said they came together to organize the celebration over a period of about a month.

“Our daughter was a graduate from Amherst this year, and was devastated because prom was cancelled,” Veard said. “Graduation upset her because it wasn’t the typical going to Wolstein Center (Cleveland State University) and that sort of thing with your friends, but prom really devastated her.”

In working with the community, she said one thing led to another enabling them to give the graduating seniors the prom that they deserved and bringing back a sense of normalcy.

“These kids have given up so much, that it’s not fair to send them off into adulthood on a negative tone,” Veard said. “So, we’ll at least send them off on a positive note.

“These are the kids that are going to change things.”

The prom was catered by Lorain’s Spectrum Catering, which worked with Amherst officials to celebrate the evening with a positive send off into the next phase of their lives, Veard said.

PHOTOS BY KEVIN MARTIN — THE MORNING JOURNAL Marion L. Steele High School held their 2020 prom at the Antler’s Ballroom in Lorain on July 18 with the help of an anonymous donor.