Prom Night Tragedy

Readers of this blog know that I wrote the After Prom Party Guide hoping to save some teenagers lives. We have all heard about prom night parties and celebrations that got out of hand and resulted in police involvement and embarrassed parents. Unfortunately, too many of those parties result in young people losing their lives because of such wild, unchaperoned revelry.

Mac Bledsoe is a famous author of the Parenting With Dignity books and DVD parenting program that has been featured on ABC's 20/20, the Today show and countless other TV and radio shows. Mac had the unfortunate personal experience of staying the night in a hotel while an after prom party was being held on his floor. He posted an entry on his blog yesterday about that incident.

Mac's story is not just about an interrupted night's sleep, that party ended tragically with the deaths of teens involved in an auto accident later that night. All one has to do is hear about such a sad account to realize that as parents we really do have to protect our children from themselves.

That my friends is why I wrote the After Prom Party Guide. If you have a teenager, know a family who has a prom-age teenager, or just want to help us spread this message. Please send this website address to everyone you can think of... help us start a Life Saving Virus! If you tell 3 people and they tell 3 people... together we can save some kids' lives.

www.LifeSavingVirus.com
Help us spread the word!

Prom Party Time Approaching

Hey parents, its time!

The High School prom is only a couple short months away and if your school or PTA/PTO organization hasn't yet finalized plans for an after-prom party… now's the time for action.

The sooner a plan is put in place - the better - for all concerned. The kids will get a first rate event, and you parents who are charged with pulling this together will sleep easier knowing what to do to make this a successful party. Fact is, even if your planning in in place and your organization is holding meetings and laying the groundwork, I'll bet there is something you could be forgetting. My after prom party planning guide leaves no stone unturned and just may offer some help in areas you haven't planned for. Whether it be security concerns, choosing the right menu or figuring out how you will entertain a group of kids for the night - I think I can help.

If you haven't yet downloaded a copy of the After Prom Party Guide… its time!

After Prom Party Entertainment

I received an email from a PTA mom who asked, "What's a good entertainment idea to have for an after-prom party?"

The best answer is to quote from my book's Event Planning section which says:

Most likely, the evening’s entertainment will be influenced by the "theme" you select for the party. As an example, if you choose a Casino Night theme, most of the entertainment is provided by the variety of Las Vegas style casino games.

Regardless of your party's theme, you will need to plan other entertainment activities to supplement the main party theme. Remember, this will be an "all-night" affair. No matter how well planned, the excitement will ebb and flow, so have plenty of clever ideas prepared. You don’t want to have long gaps between activities. Have some "mini events" sprinkled throughout the room. As an example, contact local colleges’ art departments and ask for volunteers to sketch caricatures. Put out the call for amateur magicians who would mingle with the crowd performing close-up magic tricks - hypnotists, handwriting analysts too!

Schedule activities that will continue all night, but don’t forget to plan some relaxing activities as well. Even teenagers will have trouble partying all night unless there is a balance of things to do. Some may enjoy sitting and playing a board game such as bingo especially if the prizes are appealing.

Contact the school’s yearbook committee in advance and ask if they would assemble a class history pictorial slide show. This could be played as the party is getting started or played when there is a pause in the excitement.

Create a posterity wall. Cover a wall with thick white paper (i.e. butcher paper) and encourage students to write a message or add graffiti. Offer to give the paper to a class leader to keep until the 5 or 10 year class reunion.

Film the After Prom party. Ask a parent volunteer to film a video of the party and play it as breakfast is being served and things are winding down.