There are several ways that senior classes raise money for things like prom, trips and Senior Day. Selling doughnuts, shirts and candy have been go-to fundraisers for the 2020 class at Landstown High School, where math teacher and class co-sponsor Dawn Euman has been helping those students since their freshman days. But she wanted to mix things up a little this year and start a new tradition.
Seniors already pay $45 to park and $65 for a reserved spot at Landstown. But now for $80, they can get a reserved spot and personalize it with paint.
When Euman pitched it, parking spaces were not numbered. Enter VBCPS alum Billy Doyle of Doyle Enterprises, who graciously donated his time, staff and equipment to number 136 spaces, enabling administration to enforce parking rules and to move forward with the fundraising project.
As of the beginning of school, more than half the spaces were sold. Students and their families and friends came out to paint in late August and mid-September. Euman was quite pleased at what a community event it turned out to be.
“I watched fathers show daughters how to prepare a paint roller and apply the paint,” said Euman. “I watched students sharing supplies, helping one another and having a good time.”
Biauna Rushin and her friend Andrew Peralta were coating her spot in genuine Tiffany blue one September afternoon following classes.
“A lot of my friends call me ‘bougey,’” she smiled. “So I thought a Tiffany box would be kind of nice. Instead of Tiffany & Co., it’ll be marked ‘Briauna & Co.'”
Aaron Alvarez explained that his spot was all about how he gets his exercise. “My parking space is based on the video game called Dance Dance Revolution. I spend a lot of time playing it and it means a lot to me. I wanted to show people my interests.”
As class president, Jaymesia Stephens gets a reserved parking space anyway, but she opted for the chance to “spice it up a little bit.” She found her inspiration via a Google search and, admitting to not being artistic, had a friend sketch the design. “I like to think of myself as a black queen,” she explained. “It allowed me to be expressive.”
Savannah Bennison also gets a reserved spot as Student Council Association (SCA) president, a responsibility she wanted proudly displayed. “Leadership for me has been my whole driving force for the past four years of my life. SCA made me who I am. Now being SCA president of Landstown, having that honor, it’s something I wanted to show in my spot.”
Euman has no doubt that this new tradition will endure. “We’ve laid the groundwork,” she said. “Next year’s class will have even more success because the juniors are all ‘Wow, I want to paint!'”
See more of the students’ creative work in our Facebook album.