Friendship Ball Royalty Maria Gonzales and Ivan Rosas Medina, left, join Carson High School prom king and queen candidates for a photo. Pictured are, l-r, Rebekah Brady and Dustin Dutcher, Elizabeth Everest and Porfirio Jauregui, Andrea Senda and Tony Xie, Callen Aten and Andrew Cooper, Alex Drozdoff and Adam Peterson and Faithann Hodorowhicz and Nick Lani.
In finding out she was nominated for prom queen, Elizabeth Everest, 17, suddenly realized how close she and her classmates are to finishing their time at Carson High School.
“It really focused me in on — this is it,” she said.
And she’s going to make the most of every moment.
“It’s going to be really fun,” she said. “It’s going to be a good way to top off our senior year.”
Candidates are nominated each year by the high school’s teaching staff, then voted on by the student body.
“I was shocked,” said queen candidate Andrea Senda. “I know teachers, but I wouldn’t have thought they would pick me.”
Winners will be announced during prom Saturday night in the upstairs ballroom of the Carson Nugget. This year’s theme is “The Great Gatsby.”
The candidates — including Ivan Rosas Medina and Maria Gonzales, king and queen of the Friendship Ball, a prom for special-education students — were introduced during an assembly at the school Tuesday.
Adam Peterson, 18, said he was excited for everything to come except the traditional shanghai, where candidates are kidnapped early in the morning and taken to breakfast before school.
“They make us dress up in ridiculous clothes and we have to wear them the rest of the day,” he said. “We did it to them for Winterfest. Now they’re doing it for prom. And they’re mad.”
Andy Cooper, 17, hasn’t gotten caught up in the emotion.
“I’m just riding the flow right now,” he said.
And Porfirio Jauregui has his own reasons to celebrate.
“I’m just happy I got a free ticket to prom,” he said. “That’s my favorite part.”
