Seniors plan for 'Recession Ball' formal on a budget

By Brittany Benjamin and Ann Cheung

While many seniors were dancing the night away Friday night at Senior Ball, senior Becky Dieschbourg was busy finalizing plans for her own senior formal.

Dieschbourg and several other seniors are cooperating to provide their class with an opportunity to experience the atmosphere of a formal dance before graduation without a hefty blow to the wallet.

They are calling the event "Recession Ball," in reflection of the strain many students are feeling as a result of the economy. Seniors have been notified of the event through e-mail, word of mouth and Facebook.

"I'm pretty sure we've touched the majority of seniors who are social or on Facebook," Dieschbourg said.

As many seniors felt the stress of the $125 ticket prices of this year's Senior Ball, Dieschbourg and her friends had the idea to offer another option for seniors. While there is no formal planning committee, over 30 people have contributed ideas to the planning.

The idea for an alternative ball formulated when many seniors realized they were in the same boat, Dieschbourg explained. Dieschbourg and her friends decided to collaborate to plan the formal event.

All seniors are invited to the formal, whether or not they attended Senior Ball.

Recession Ball will be held at a local venue on El Camino Real, Fiorillo's Restaurant, making it easy for transportation.

Tickets will be $45. Two hundred tickets are available.

Due to an overwhelming response, Dieschbourg expects to sell out.

"This is not to detract from Senior Ball," said Dieschbourg of Recession Ball, which is two weeks after Senior Ball. "Part of the appeal for a lot of students is the price reduction."

Dieschbourg said she wished she could attend both dances, but was unable to go to Senior Ball because of a conflicting schedule.

She said Recession Ball was an opportunity for seniors to experience a senior formal when various conflicts inhibited them from attending Senior Ball.

Her goal for Recession Ball is that it will create the same experience of Senior Ball.

According to Dieschbourg, many seniors were planning to "do their own thing" in lieu of Senior Ball, either because of conflict dates or money.

"This is not meant to be an us versus them thing," said Dieschbourg, who recognized the work of Associated Students in planning Senior Ball.

She invites all AS members to attend Recession Ball.

"I think that it is wonderful that seniors are working to provide as many opportunities as possible to bond together as a class," senior class chair Mandi Collins said. Collins played a major role in planning Senior Ball.

"Senior Ball was way too expensive for me," said senior Alex Blumberg-Long. "This is way cheaper. Plus, it's being planned by friends of mine."

The tickets for the Recession Ball are less than half the price of those for Senior Ball with the same atmosphere.

However, not all members of the senior class are rushing to buy tickets for Recession Ball.

"I've heard some opinion that people think that it's silly that only 200 tickets are being sold," said senior Erika Hight. "That's only a fraction of the senior class."

For all 200 seniors in attendance, there will be a sit down Italian dinner provided by Fiorillo Restaurant and dancing with music from DJ Spek.

"I want the senior Recession Ball to be an opportunity for seniors not to miss out on Senior Ball," Dieschbourg said.

"I hope the school realized that students have different types of conflicts and I hope they can be supportive of the senior initiative to plan a different opportunity for a formal ball."

The event will be held May 29 from 7-11:30 p.m.

The deadline to buy tickets is May 23.

All money collected from tickets will be directly invested into the event, Dieschbourg said. Any left over money after paying off for the facility will be used to pay for possible party favors or drinks.

Contact Brittany Benjamin and Ann Cheung at (408) 554-4546 or news@thesantaclara.com.