Graduation is just around the corner. Counting down the days, the senior class of 2019 has begun preparing for one last event they have together. The last time they will be together before going their separate ways. The last goodbye. Senior bash.

Senior bash is a drug-free alcohol-free event that takes place the night of graduation May 19. In past years, the senior class has been responsible for the majority of the fundraising because this is not a school sponsored event. However, for this year’s senior class, the majority of the fundraising was already completed by the senior bash committee.

“As of March 18, we have $10,500,” Mrs. Julie Groves, head of the senior bash parent committee, said. “Our first fundraising was to go to businesses in the greater Big Horn Basin, mostly Cody and Powell, and ask them to support a drug and alcohol free celebration of Powell High School graduation. Then, when we got money back from that, we determined that we needed more money.

“Our group decided that because you guys have so many responsibilities, so much time spent on academic things and those things, we wanted to try to figure out a way not to have to engage you so much.”

Because most of the fundraising has already been taken care of, the senior class has a new fundraising project that will be their first official fundraiser of the year.

“That’s when we came back around and we had people who came to us actually and said they would donate things for a raffle,” Mrs. Groves said. “We also had Heart Mountain Mudd who offered to give us a days worth of sales. So mostly it is parents going out, communicating with people they are connected to and having them offer options to fundraise the money.”

It’s not only the job of the students to take care of the fundraising, but it is also the job of the committee along with the help of Mr. Scott McKenzie.

“I’m acting just as a parent to help out,” Mr. McKenzie said. “It’s all put out by your parents and they just wanted a central location for kids to bring the money. As a parent of twins [in the senior class], I said I would help out.”
Because the fundraising has been collecting sufficient funds, the money collected by the seniors this month will go towards gifts for the class during the event.

“We have to pay for a place to have the event,” Mrs. Groves said. “We mostly have to pay for activities during the evening.

“You know, whatever we have to do to provide a safe, alcohol and drug free event and provide you guys with just a place at the end of the day to have that one last celebration. There are some gifts involved, there is some food involved, there are DJ’s involved, that kind of thing. It’s paying for the whole event for that evening.”

During the past couple of weeks while the fundraising has taken place, students have mentioned they either lost their tickets or are choosing to not take place in the fundraiser all together.

“If you choose senioritis and you have those tickets, bring them back to Mr. McKenzie and we will get some other kids who are more motivated, who have more time, who whatever their reasoning is, to sell those tickets. Or, then when I come in to check with Mr. McKenzie, I have parents who could possibly sell those tickets. The collective is going to still do their best for provide a nice evening, and a drug-free and alcohol-free event. I would encourage the kids to sell [the tickets] because the pool of money above whatever our expenses are will go to fun gifts for everyone. ”
The doors at the Cabre Gym at Northwest College will open at 8 p.m. and be locked at 9 p.m. If a student chooses to leave, they will not have the option of coming back into the event, which runs into the early morning hours.