Derry, NH Parents Are Putting on a Prom for Pinkerton Academy [OPINION]

In case you missed it, WMUR reported a couple of days ago that Pinkerton Academy in Derry, NH decided to cancel prom due to COVID-19 concerns. When word of that reached parents, a group of parents of some Pinkerton seniors, decided to take matters into their own hands and make sure the kids had a senior prom after all.

Sometime in June, the non-school-sanctioned prom will be held at the Castleton in Windham, NH. And to those parents, who decided to go against what Pinkerton decided and make a prom happen anyway -- I say, job well done.

It's nothing against Pinkerton or their decision, honestly. I totally understand where they're coming from -- you don't want to put on a school event that could lead into students coming down with the virus and quite possibly, in some cases that have been seen, fight for their lives all for a few hours of fun and dancing.

One of the parents, a mother of a Pinkerton student named Amy Nolan, told WMUR that "prom is a very important rite of passage for kids of this age, and we just didn't want to see our kids miss out." And, like I see Pinkerton's point of view, I also see Amy and the other parents' points of view, too, in wanting to make this night happen, anyway.

I actually didn't go to my senior prom -- an honest mix of not being able to secure a date (not for lack of trying, but five no's -- yes, five -- can be a bit demoralizing), but more so my cousin was graduating on the same night and he offered me a ticket, and quite honestly that ticket held way more weight to me than a prom ticket.

But at least I had the choice to not go. That was my decision. But Pinkerton's call to cancel prom would leave all those senior students without the choice to make on whether or not to attend one of the biggest nights of your high school years. And in a year where enough has been taken from students -- their graduations, their senior year sport seasons, a normal college experience in general -- if it's possible to make them feel as normal as possible (albeit safely) for just a night, then all the power to them.

The keyword I just mentioned, though, is safely. If this parent-made prom goes off like it's just another normal year and just another normal prom, then it's not coming off as looking out for the students and trying to give them a night of normalcy, but more a rogue, defiant act. But I don't think it's about that, and I don't even think it's about the "rite of passage" for a high school senior.

We spend enough of our lives having to be adults, and for some, college isn't either an option or a destination, so senior prom is one of the last nights of their "kid life." Life flies by fast enough, especially when the age odometer turns another digit higher. At some point -- again, safely -- you just have to let kids live. And good for these parents for taking the extra steps to let their kids safely do that.