It is a truism that in a small town, nothing is a secret—everybody knows everyone and everything. And yet, the small town of Harvard has been keeping a secret for the past 25 years. Each year the theme of Celebration, the alcohol- and substance-free after-prom party at Bromfield, is kept mum until it is revealed first to community members in a special sneak preview and then to the high school students who attend the all-night festivities.
What is not a secret is how amazing Celebration always is, as anyone who has attended or done a walk-through can attest. The Bromfield entrance, gym, cafeteria, auditorium, and hallways are utterly transformed. No one can ever believe it is really the same old building underneath the creative themed decorations.
Members of the Celebration committee are thrilled that, after having had to reinvent their plans for the past two years because of the pandemic, this year, on May 20, the event will be back to the traditional indoor venue. And the committee is looking for help, both for this year’s event and for continuing next year.
At the last indoor Celebration in 2019, the Hogwarts Express runs through the hallway. (Photo by Tim Clark)
Celebration is not a school event, though it has the full support and cooperation of the Bromfield School and district administration. It is the parents who started it and who work the wonders. While the parents of seniors take the lead, there are parents whose kids have already graduated who pitch in, and in the past some volunteers were parents of children still in elementary school. A few years ago a group of parents made Celebration a nonprofit, Harvard Celebration Inc., with an executive board of four positions plus one or two members at large, point people for 11 committees, and many other volunteers. The not-for-profit status allows the group to be organized, have insurance, and receive donations from individuals and corporations that are tax-deductible.
Rosie VanDorpe, secretary of Harvard Celebration Inc. and chair of the event this year, said members are confident they will be able to pull off Celebration 2022, even with less time to get everything done. At the kickoff meeting last October, the group started to plan for an indoor event, but then, because of omicron, shifted to thinking about an outdoor event similar to the one they sponsored in 2021. Then, fairly recently, they went back to planning for the traditional inside overnight. “Because of the uncertainties, we’re behind in fundraising,” said Vicki Bilafer, board treasurer. Usually two-thirds of donations and prizes come from residents and one-third from local businesses and grants. On the positive side, VanDorpe said, “We’ve had new people join in the fun, which is great, and we would gladly welcome any new volunteers.” Ideally, Celebration has around 150 volunteers, some for just a few hours, others for the full eight months of planning, said Alice Bertram, board member at large.
Keeping kids safe
The purpose of Celebration is to keep young people safe all night after the prom, a night documented as one of high risk for traffic accidents and fatalities. Board member Carolyn Grant shared her story from several years ago: “My daughter called me soon after she started college in California to say, ‘Thank you, mom.’ When I asked her what she was thanking me for, she explained that almost everyone she had met knew of a tragedy around prom night. ‘Mom, everyone has a story except for me. Thank you for Celebration.’”
All Bromfield juniors and seniors and their dates are invited to Celebration, and those who do not attend the prom are also welcome at the after-party. Attendees must be checked in by midnight, and once in the building, they can leave, but if they do, they can’t return. A wide range of games and activities, and continuous music, entices them to remain all night. Prizes are given in the morning and a special breakfast—although food, mostly donated by parents, has been available all through the early morning hours. Another inducement is that Celebration is a chance to spend time with classmates before they all split off for whatever is next for them.
Both the Harvard Fire and Police Departments have been active in helping to ensure the safety of the students. Fire Chief Rick Sicard works with the decorating committee to make sure all props and events will be safe in any situation and that there is always a safe way out in an emergency. At least one firefighter donates time and support in case of a medical need. In the past, the Police Department has worked with the leadership members to make them aware of all types of situations that might occur and to provide a presence during the first hour and occasionally throughout the night.
The transformation
Transforming the high school is sort of like setting up a traveling circus. Everything has to be perfectly planned and organized, because the group of volunteers has less than nine hours to work its magic. Friday, May 20, trucks and cars will line up outside Bromfield, waiting for students to clear the building on the early-release day. With the last student gone, up to 50 people will swarm the building, carrying all manner of objects. Structures have been pre-built and hidden in various homes across town, waiting for this day to be reassembled inside the school. Many of the volunteers involved with Celebration will be there for setup, from those assembling large structures to those bringing prepared food, and everything in between. They will be working up until the very last minute before the public arrives. The community is invited to the traditional walk-through for a sneak preview of the theme and decorations of Celebration at 9 p.m. on May 20.
Volunteers transform parts of the Bromfield School into unrecognizable scenes, all within nine hours of setup. This Chinese restaurant from Celebration 2016 provides places for students to sit and eat during the all-night event. (Photo by Lisa Aciukewicz)
Connie Woolcock, leader of the decorating committee, said her group and some members of the overall leadership team discussed possible themes in the fall, looking at the list of possibilities compiled over the years and also being open to new suggestions. While of course Woolcock would not divulge the theme, she did say it’s one that’s been on the list for many years, and now “its time has come.” She said every year the decorating committee reuses and repurposes materials from past events, but because of the pandemic, Celebration lost its very large storage space at the school and has very few things left. This year her group of 17 volunteers—some veterans and some just recently on board—will rely even more heavily on the community for help gathering furnishings, games, and decor items for the theme. “We will be posting a ‘borrow’ list,” she said.
The history of Celebration
Copies of the old Harvard Post give a history of Celebration. The first after-prom celebration was held May 23, 1997, and was the brainchild of a group of parents, interested adults, and students. Then as now, the impetus for the school-sponsored event was to keep teens safe in one place after the prom. That first year 135 students attended the prom and about 60 of those attended the party, with about 20 leaving not too long after arriving. The party was also open to juniors and seniors who did not attend the prom. One senior described the event as “a prom party playground. I had more fun than I ever had in my life.” There were games, prizes, music, movies, food, and dancing.
The next year, attendance doubled, with many more staying longer at the party. A sad irony may have influenced their decision: The event was dedicated to a Bromfield senior who had been killed the week before in a car crash. At that point the party seems to have been officially named “Celebration,” as it was reported in the Post, and the first of the secret themes appeared: “Garden Party.” As one attendee said, “It was like walking into some other world.” In 1999 attendance had climbed and again the decorations drew gasps of disbelief. “California Dreamin’” rolled out the red carpet, created the Golden Gate Bridge out of the ramp in a hallway, and had sand, beach chairs, and music.
Who will carry on?
The leadership of Harvard Celebration is grappling with the question of who will carry on this great tradition? Currently, all board positions are held by people who either have seniors in the Class of 2022 or whose children have graduated over the past few years and so are “aging out.” The group also worries that many parents and students don’t really know about Celebration and how great the need is for new people to get involved. VanDorpe said, “What we are most worried about is who picks up the mantle of overall event coordination for next year and beyond?”
The committee hopes one or two people will step forward to learn the ropes as the current committee completes the planning and executing of this year’s event, and then carry leadership forward for 2023. The committee is looking now for additional volunteers who can shadow a subcommittee this year and assume lead positions next year. Board president Patty Wilkey, who has been involved with Celebration for almost 20 years since her kids were at the elementary school, said, “I still care a lot for our teens on prom night. It takes the whole Harvard community to pull this off, and we have seen the volunteer numbers drop. We really need some new blood to help us keep the magic of Celebration alive.”
The secret-keepers
So how is it that no one in this small town leaks the secret of Celebration? Partly, it is the commitment the parents and other adults who work on the committees make. And perhaps the young people really don’t want to know the theme ahead of time—the not-knowing is part of the tradition, part of the fun. Keeping the secret on both sides may represent something deeper, too: a tacit understanding between the generations. Parents really want their kids making good choices and being safe; the kids, like Carolyn Grant’s daughter, really appreciate the lengths to which the adults have gone to show they care.
