Central Oregon braces for prom season
The rush is on for thousands of high school juniors and seniors across the High Desert to get ready for prom. This year is a little bit different — eight schools, from The Dalles all the way to Gilchrist, will hold the event this coming Saturday.
“Reservations right now, I know, are a pain,” Dalio Losch, a senior at Summit High School, said Monday. “I have a lot of friends who are having trouble getting reservations.”
“It’s been really busy for us,” said Kathy Evans, the owner of Bend Wedding and Formal. “we’ve had to bring in a few extra help.”
Local businesses say even though there are eight proms being held this Saturday, they’re working to help everyone.
“We have a lot of in stock tuxedos,” Evans said. “We will make sure that every kid who wants a tuxedo for prom will go out of here with a tuxedo.”
As for getting dinner reservations, many restaurants are booked. One option: having a catered meal at your house.
“We can do something as simple as a barbecue chicken and keep than under like $9 a person, on up to an herb-crusted fillet dinner with salmon,” said Cody Serbus, part-owner of Country Catering.
Serbus says they can make meals from two to 20 people.
The one business happy nearly every prom is this weekend: local florists.
“We’re glad they did,” said Barne Thomas, the owner of Wildflowers of Oregon. “Often they happen on Mother’s Day, which means we can’t accommodate every corsage or boutonniere that we get (requests for).”
Flooded with customers, businesses will stay up late Friday night, trying to get every order done — knowing they don’t have the hardest job.
“The boys have the hardest jobs,” Thomas said, “they have to buy the corsages and match the dresses.”
Many shops across Central Oregon say if you haven’t started getting ready for prom, not to worry. They say there is plenty of time to put together the perfect prom.
