Eleven Circles; All night prom party

MEXICO- It may not have been the acceptable thing to do amongst teens 10, 20 or even 30 years ago, but more and more young adults of this generation are looking for safe and fun alternatives to the party hard and sleep all day stigma of prom night.

The newly formed Eleven Circles Teen Center that has taken up residence in the Mexico Recreation Center is trying to help change the belief that prom night is nothing without sneaking off to participate in underage drinking and other dangerous activities associated with the night.

On Saturday, May 21 beginning at 7 p.m. and lasting all night until 6 a.m. on Sunday, May 22, Eleven Circles will offer a night of movies, games, roller skating, food, drinks and, not to mention prizes for the best dancer and the ugliest prom dress competitions, as well as much more. As an added bonus, local musician Donnie Holder will be performing during the night.

All RSU 10 students are invited to attend, as the delay in opening the center didn't provide for Telstar, Mountain Valley or Buckfield prom nights to be included. “We want all students to be able to take advantage of this night,” noted Erin Cox, teen advisor with Cindrie Cormier and Becky Skibitsky. “We want to give them a sense of community and a way to belong to something all their own.”

The cost for tickets is only $3 for advanced reservations and $5 at the door.

Since the center is in its crawling stages, they don't have much for furniture. They are asking students to bring their bean bag chairs or whatever they will feel most comfortable on while hanging out during the night hours.

Anyone interested in donating food or drink items for the night is asked to call Cindrie at 357-8748. Also, anyone wishing to volunteer their time or who has items they can use, such as tables, chairs or other useful furniture can also contact Cindrie.

“We are so thankful to John Madigan and Greg Arsenault for helping us make this happen,” noted Erin Cox. “We wouldn't have been able to start this without their help with the space.”

Cox noted, “When I lived in Alaska the schools stayed open after prom to allow teens to change out of their dress clothes and play games, watch movies and have fun right there. It had a noticeable impact on decreasing the amount of drunk driving, fatalities and underage drinking. It was a great concept.”

Nobody is asking area students to boycott prom, Eleven Circles is offering a safe place for after prom or for those not attending their school prom.

Chaperones consisting of community members, teachers, and advisors will be on-hand for the all-nighter. For added security the Mexico Explorers have been asked to be present.