On Tuesday, July 30, the Arc Nature Coast held a Prom for the individuals it serves. The Gone With the Wind themed event kicked off at noon at the center located in Spring Hill. Approximately one hundred Arc customers, along with staff and people from the community attended the dance. Several months of planning had gone into putting the prom together.
Angela Bryant, team leader at the center, stated, “We chose Gone With the Wind as our theme because we wanted to celebrate the South.”
“We decided to organize the prom because in our Kiwanis Club meeting we had discussed the fact that the Arc customers had never experienced a prom and we thought it would be a wonderful thing for them to experience,” Ms. Bryant continued.
The Kiwanis Club of Spring Hill sponsored the prom. The organization paid for the refreshments, posters, balloons, backdrops and other supplies. Club president, Donna Gaula and another member, Roseann Jones, along with Angela Bryant decorated the center, spending more than four hours inflating countless balloons and putting up the decorations.
Thomas Assante, owner of Spring Hill Limousine Service, provided three limos to give rides for the attendees at no cost. Good Will and Jericho Road Thrift Shops donated prom dresses.
Hairstylists and nail technicians from Benes Career Academy came and did the hair and nails for many of the women. In addition to donating their time for this event, every eight weeks the students come to the Arc center and give free haircuts and manicures.
PJ Lobato (PJ, the DJ) donated his time to be the disc jockey. He has been volunteering his services at the Arc for the past six years.
In keeping with the theme, Arc customers had been learning and practicing the Virginia Reel for the past several weeks. In art class, they made boutonnieres for the men and wrist corsages for the women.
As the attendees socialized and got ready for the dancing, a DVD of Gone With the Wind played in the background.
Doreen Lyons, one of the Arc customers commented, “Getting dressed up was the best part.”
Sam Seymour stated, “I really liked the decorations and dancing with Doreen was fun too.”
By the smiles on the faces of the men and women, it was evident that everyone had a delightful time.
The Arc Nature Coast was extremely grateful to those in the community who helped them put together the amazing event. They posted to social media,
“The Arc Nature Coast prom was a huge hit! Thank you to Angela Bryant and her team for putting on such a great event! Thank you to Bene’s Career Academy Spring Hill for coming out to do hair and nails and making our ladies feel beautiful! Thank you to Spring Hill Limousine Service for allowing us to feel “fancy” in your amazing limousines! Thank you to the members of the Kiwanis Club of Spring Hill, FL for sponsoring and helping decorate and all the things you did behind the scenes. Thank you to Hernando County Sheriff’s Office SRO’s who came out to escort the attendees! Thank you to Christine Jarque for the beautiful photos. Thank you to all those who donated dresses and their time. Thank you to everyone who played a part in making this event so very special!”
