WASHINGTON, N.C. (WNCT) — Dreams came true for a special group of students at Washington High School on Saturday evening, and it was all thanks to an outpour of love from the community.
“There’s no words for this, this is a blessing and a dream come true,” said Pam Smith, a proud parent of her special-needs son, Lawson Ross.
After one parent posted to Facebook the idea to send the class to prom, donations rang in to help fund the prom attire for the students, a dinner at the Washington Yacht and Country Club, photos and a red carpet leading to a stretch limousine.
“It’s incredible that they get the same opportunity as their peers that are at the high school with them, and we’ve been looking forward to this for song long so it’s a really exciting night,” said Washington High School special needs teacher Serena Current. “People don’t realize how important things like this are for them because they don’t always get the same opportunity as all their peers.”
Ebony Sneed is a parent of a prom participant and said she just wanted her child to know that he belongs.
“[I want him] to know that, he doesn’t have to be excluded, he is the same just as everyone else, really,” Sneed said.
Students said they had been looking forward to hitting the dance floor and hearing some of their favorite artists like Beyonce and Cardi B.
As the limo drove out of the Washington Yacht and Country Club, community members and loved ones sent off the prom participants with signs and sparklers. They cheered the students on as they headed to the site of the prom to have the best night of their lives.
Parents said the class spent the whole night on the dance floor. They also said this was a night no one would forget.
