After at least five years without a fall dance or mixer, student body president Addi Bowes and other student council members worked to eventually approve a Halloween Dance for all grades.
After meetings and rumors about a potential Homecoming Dance, scheduling allowed for Sion’s first official Boo Bash Oct. 25, a themed dance that brought together students for a night of fright and festive celebration.
The dance was a success
for the intimate group that attended. Fairies, vampires and princesses were among some
of costumed attendees at the dance. Sophomore Raven Silvers dressed up as a black swan.
“We were just really hype and really happy to be there,” Silvers said. “My friends and I didn’t have any plans for Halloween so the Boo Bash was a super fun way for us to hangout.”
Fall Dances used to be
an annual tradition, and the theme changed each year. Then COVID-19 hit and when school resumed, the dance did not.
“My original goal for starting the dance up again was to have a Homecoming because there’s so many perks to being in an all-girls school, but you don’t get the typical American high school experience,” Bowes said. “We don’t have Friday night football games or Homecoming, so we decided to try and start the tradition back up.”
Another senior eager to restart this tradition was Tessa Lind. As a member of the student council, she joined the Boo Bash Committee, which comprised of
students responsible for decorations,
music selection and
fundraising activities. “Obviously, it’s a Halloween
dance so we wanted it to feel spooky, but also cute,” Lind said. “We only spent fifty dollars on decorations, but we got a big ghost inflatable that we placed next to a photo area where people could take pictures.”
The underlying purpose of the dance was to raise money for Redemptorist Social Services Center, a non-profit agency that has provided a lifeline to the poor and elderly of metropolitan Kansas City since 1986, but low turnout brought up concerns and conversations about how our school supports the organization.
“I have been trying to work away from fundraising being just fun and games for us,” junior class president Heidi Nance said. “I am uncomfortable with that. It feels a little dystopian.”
Nance’s starting ideas to work toward change include using the expertise of theology teacher Paul Kramschuster to present on the severity of the issue to the entire student body.
“I’m hoping the school will
be receptive to that,” Nance said. “I’m hoping that if we portray
how truly dire this is and the importance of our impact, then people will find the empathy in their hearts to make a difference.”
Boo Bash sold 120 tickets to fundraise for Redemptrist, but due to DJ costs and the breathalizing company fee, the event lost money.
“It’s more than just Socktoberfest or competing with other grades to win civvies and a day off of school,” Nance said. “What we do for Redempterist affects real people, and it’s worthwhile in its own right.”