As part of Senior Crew’s lineup of events, Senior Lunches will be hosted today and tomorrow.
“This is their last chapter of high school before entering the real world,” senior class co-sponsor Constance June said. “We want to put as much into this ‘last chapter’ as we can before we close the book.”
Senior Crew is the student-led group at Mansfield that plans and coordinates events for seniors throughout the year. They are closely related with StuCo, with some of their members consisting of students from StuCo. Senior Lunches are one of many events hosted for seniors throughout the year.
“During the fall, it’s like celebrating the Thanksgiving season with your parents,” senior class president Ene Odo said. “But in general, it’s to bring family together. Most of us haven’t eaten with our parents since elementary school, so it brings back some nostalgia.”
Senior Lunches are scheduled for all lunch periods today and tomorrow in the library. Seniors interested were required to RSVP beforehand so that the attendance office could pre-print visitor badges to manage the influx of family members.
“We owe the front office a huge debt of gratitude,” June said. “It gets crazy for them and they’re sitting here with hundreds of people coming in and being badged in. We couldn’t do it without them.”
Normally, food and drinks are banned in the library to promote a clean environment and prevent pest infestations. Since the library is the venue for the Senior Lunches, this rule is halted during the event.
“Food in the library is getting much better now because the kids know that expectation,” librarian Rebecca Buechele said. “When I first started, I found a chicken bone on a shelf behind some books one time. Now, they have a lot more respect for the space.”
Senior Lunches were hosted on one day between three lunches in previous years. With the inclusion of an additional lunch last year, the Senior Lunches are now split between two days during all four lunch periods.
“With the lunches being split up, it doesn’t look quite as packed as it used to,” June said. “It also provides an opportunity for split households so that, say, mom comes on one day and dad on the other.”
There are two senior lunches hosted during the fall and spring respectively. The Spring Lunches are slated to be hosted at the end of the school year during Senior Week. Official dates will be posted once they are scheduled during the spring semester.
“I wish my own boys’ school would have done senior lunches,” Buechele said. “It’s such a great thing for parents to come and see their kids during the day. It’s just fun to watch and see everyone’s excitement.”
