Prairie View prom walk-in warm and breezy with plenty to see

Updated: Apr 24

Violet Long and Donna Ingram arrive at the Prairie View prom on Saturday, April 13, as nearly 200 onlookers, family and friends snap photos and enjoy the spectacle. (Roger Sims/Linn County Journal)

For a second year running the winds of March made an appearance at the walk-in for the Prairie View High School prom. This year, however, instead of the bone-chilling gales of the 2024 prom, the temperature was in the 80s on the evening of Saturday, April 13.

And while the carefully coifed hair couldn’t withstand the wind, the students and family and friends gathered to watch the walk-in did so in relative comfort.

Applause greets this couple as they stop for the crowd to take photos and admire their choice of dress for the evening. (Roger Sims/Linn County Journal)

As usual, in addition to the dresses, tuxedos making individual statements, the method of arrival did as well. From an elegant town car reminiscent of years past to a 40s era pickup in the process of restoration, to a coupe with a rumble seat, to a ‘Vette, to jacked pickups, to a limousine with horns affixed to the hood, to a fun-size bus, watching the whips roll in was almost as fun as watching who emerged from them.

This couple arrived in an coupe complete with a rumble seat. (Shelly Clinton/Special to the Journal)

A crowd of more than a couple hundred people, including friends, family members and those who simply enjoy watching the walk-in, crowded in close to the path leading to the door. Couples, singles, triples, and groups of four or more stopped on a square of carpet on the sidewalk to give photographers a chance to capture the mood of the evening.

As the sun began to sink on the horizon, the party-goers were already inside, visiting with friends or dancing to the driving rhythms of the deejay. It was going to be a night that wouldn’t be forgotten.