On Saturday, May 3, our Lakewood Ranger seniors celebrated the almost end of their four-year journey at Lakewood High School at the 2025 prom and after prom. Students had been preparing for the night for weeks, excited to see what everyone wore and to experience the theme of after prom.

This year, prom 2025 was held at The House of Blues in Downtown Cleveland. Many teachers came to volunteer their time to help keep the night running as smoothly as possible. When inside, there were three different areas for students to be in. On the first floor, where students entered the House of Blues, was a room filled with many places to sit, along with a bar area for students to get refreshments. There was also more seating on the upper level, along with tables for food and drinks. On this level, there was also seating for students and teachers to watch their peers dancing on the dance floor. Each room had TVs filled with pictures of seniors throughout their high school experience for everyone to see.

“At prom, I helped with coat check and scanned tickets. I monitored the venue, rotating between the three floors,” art teacher Sophia Stasiak said. “I also helped out as needed, whether it was taking a photo of students with their friends or even teaching them a new dance move.”

On the lower level, that’s where all the fun took place. There was even more seating, food, and drinks for the students, a dance floor, and a DJ. Students gathered together on the dance floor, dancing and singing their hearts out, living in the moment. Music like “Love Story” by Taylor Swift, “Love” by Keyshia Cole, “Sticky” by Tyler the Creator, and many more were played throughout the four hours students were at prom. While downstairs, students were able to take a break from dancing and go over to the photo booth to take photos with their friends.

“Prom was such a great experience this year! The venue was beautiful and the students all looked stunning,” Stasiak said. “Getting to spend the night with my coworkers and students was a blast, and I am so glad I was able to help out this year.”

“I enjoyed being out on the dance floor and even meeting new people,” senior Adler Stockdale said.

While at prom, students and teachers were served a variety of foods, from veggies to mac and cheese bites, there was something there that everyone could enjoy. Along with the delicious food, there was the soda bar, which served the signature mocktail, the “Ranger Refresher,” which consisted of strawberry ginger lemonade and Starry citrus. Many students went back for seconds after trying it for the first time.

“My favorite drink while at prom was the Shirley Temple,” Stockdale said.

The night was filled with many memories from 6:30 to 10:30 of dancing, pictures, and food, but the fun didn’t stop there. Just 30 minutes later, students were ready to head to after prom.

“My experience at prom was amazing and something I’m going to remember for a lifetime,” Stockdale said.

“Seeing my students all dressed up was one of the reasons why I decided to chaperone prom,” Stasiak said. “I enjoyed taking photos with students, having conversations with them, and getting to connect with them outside of the classroom setting. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime experience for the seniors, and being able to witness how happy everyone was made the night so special.”

After prom was held at the high school, parents of students spent the day setting up the school for a fantastic after prom night for the students. This year, the theme for the after-prom was a carnival, and each room was filled head to toe with many different decorations. When you first came in through the back doors, you entered a mirror maze filled with varying types of mirrors in each corner. Then you were led into the meat locker with fake legs hanging from the ceiling. Once you finished the maze, you were welcomed into the cafeteria filled with decorations all around. On the lower level of the cafeteria were carnival tents set up for students to hang out, along with a bunch of baskets for the raffle. On the upper level was a bunch of food, from pizza and corn dogs to caramel apples and snow cones. The cafeteria had everything a hungry student at midnight would want.

“My favorite food of the night was the hog dogs after prom,” Stockdale said.

Also in the cafeteria was another photo booth where students could put on fun hats and take fun pictures with their friends.

“I thought the theme was really funny,” senior Ayla French said. “But also cool because of all the thought put into it.”

Once you entered the gym, you were met with so many different carnival games to play, you could throw balls at clowns, try to pick up a bottle with a loop and string, and there was even a high striker game where you used the hammer to try and hit the bell. At all the games, you could win many prizes, like candies and stuffed animals.

Behind the games were four different kinds of inflatables. You were able to race your friend head to head in the inflatable obstacle course, the inflatable bungee run where you raced in a vest attached to the inflatable trying to get your beanbag farther than your opponent, the jousting arena where you battled, trying to balance on your inflatable platform and push off your opponent, and the inflatable climb the ladder, where you tried to see how far you could make it without falling. No one was left bored after prom.

“My favorite part of after-prom was the inflatable courses and the decorations,” French said.

Along with all the fun in the gym in the black box students were able to chill and hang out with friends and play cornhole. Right next door in the choir room, students sang their hearts out in karaoke.

For many students, prom is a night to create memories that will last a lifetime. But that also means prom was one of the last times many students will be together as one big class before the class of 2025 graduates at the end of the month.

“With prom being the last event for seniors before we graduate, it was like a realization feeling and then a bittersweet realization,” French said.

The seniors will never forget the fun they had out on the dance floor one last time together.