This year’s seniors will be in for seven wild hours when they go
to Grad Nite.
This was the only hint co-chairman Tom Chavez would give about
the June 15 annual graduation celebration
–
”
It’s a Grad Nite 2007
”
– held at the Gilroy High School gym.
Gilroy – This year’s seniors will be in for seven wild hours when they go to Grad Nite.
This was the only hint co-chairman Tom Chavez would give about the June 15 annual graduation celebration – “It’s a Grad Nite 2007” – held at the Gilroy High School gym. The event, which provides entertainment, prizes and food to about half the graduating class, is an alternative to house parties thrown by students.
“The whole concept of a Grad Nite is to give the graduating class of seniors a safe and sober environment to have a good time, to celebrate their graduation with their fellow graduates,” Chavez said.
To ensure seniors stay safe and sober at the event, they are required to stay from the time they arrive – which can be as early as 10pm – until the end of festivities at 5am. Students can only leave – and will not be allowed back in – if they have a parent pick them up. This prevents graduates from smuggling any contraband into the event or consuming any elsewhere and then returning.
The students will have plenty to entertain them during their seven hours. In addition to snacks, a DJ and a raffle that doles out prizes throughout the long night, there will be a bevy of games and activities. Seniors can gamble with fake money in the casino room, wrestle in gigantic sumo suits, scramble up a rock-climbing wall, try to outlast a mechanical bull or be a soccer star in a human foosball game. There will also be a cash cube, in which students are put in a glass case and have 15 seconds to snag money – real and fake – as it is powered around them by a fan. The night will end with an interactive performance by a hypnotist.
While students are asked to pay $55 for the event, the cost to Grad Nite is closer to $110 per person – not including the work done by the more than 35 volunteers – said Chavez. There are also scholarship tickets available through the high school counseling office and there has not been a shortage in the past, he said.
The volunteers will work for the entire week leading up to graduation to prepare for the event and decorate the gym. The volunteers, primarily parents, said they want to make their child’s graduation memorable.
The nonprofit that runs the event typically needs about $40,000 to host it. This year, it has raised about $20,000 and is hoping for some last minute participation from donors.
“If we could come up with another $4,000, we’d be in really great shape,” Chavez said.
The funds do more than just entertain seniors – they also keep them out of possible trouble, he said.
“It’s money well spent.”
