It’s Friday March 10 in Estherwood, and senior Susan Arcena runs up to fellow classmates smiling and says, “I have five prom dates, and they’re all over 50!”  She was not alone in accompanying senior citizens on the dance floor.  The class of 2015 danced and laughed with the elderly during their MISH project, “Senior Prom.

Students took on a range of tasks.  Some catered food, some hung up coats, and some socialized with the elders to make them feel welcome.

Senior MISH representative Olivia Gibson played an important role in organizing the event.  She said, “I think it went really well.  Ideally we would have had the committees better organized before so I was pretty nervous about it being hectic but it actually worked out very well.  Students were happy to volunteer wherever needed.”

Once everyone had arrived, the students served dinner and ordure’s to the seniors.  Seniors shared stories with the students in the conversations they had.  One man said his grandfather was the second Italian in Dobbs Ferry, and his family has stayed here ever since.

Many smiles could be seen, from the faculty volunteers, to the seniors, to the other type of seniors.  Gibson said, “It was a very good community feel.”