Seniors celebrate with parade at Galleria
NATHAN HANDLING / EVY OF THE TIGER
The parents of Roseville High worked with the City of Roseville to schedule a parade around the Westfield Galleria.
May 9, 2020
Roseville High School families decorated their cars and came out to the Westfield Galleria mall on Thursday to celebrate the graduating class of 2020 with a parent-organized parade.
Although there are currently no plans for a traditional graduation for the class of 2020, parents organized a parade to celebrate at the Galleria mall. RHS also plans to let seniors take photos in cap and gown on a stage in front of the school.
While seniors drove their decorated cars along the parade route, members of the Roseville community – from the Roseville Fire Department and Police Department to students’ families, friends and teachers – decorated signs and cheered them on from the parking lots.
The parents of RHS seniors, like senior mother Jill Henderson, orchestrated the event with the City of Roseville to give students a socially distanced, Placer County Health approved send-off for senior year.
“Every headache, every hiccup, every road bump that we hit, when that parade started and everybody was honking and waving and smiling, it was worth it a thousand times over,” Henderson said.
Senior Laurel Enos decked out her car in tiger pride, with orange and black balloons, window paint and signs.
“I wanted to participate because it was something I knew the community was working hard to put on in order to make the graduating class feel honored and celebrated,” Enos said. “Once I showed up, I knew it was definitely worth going… Getting to see the teachers and the community all in one place felt close to a graduation ceremony and was a nice little bit of closure.”
Senior father Jeremy Noonan helped his daughter rep her years on the RHS dance team during the parade.
“I really think it helped, since for a lot of kids this will be the last time they get to see the teachers and staff that they spent these last four years with,” Noonan said. “It really sent the message that everyone is so proud of the class of 2020 and they are not forgotten during these challenging times.”
As the COVID-19 restrictions lighten up, RHS has made plans for students to walk a stage in their caps and gowns for a photo op. Senior Ellen Burns said the car parade and school events have given RHS families a nice way to celebrate despite the circumstances.
“I am still looking forward to the other things the school has planned, and I hope we are able to get an in-person graduation ceremony later, but this was a good event,” Burns said. “I think it’s awesome – all the things the community is doing to make seniors feel special.”
