What made you go to all of this trouble? Well, the kids didn’t have prom last year, so we kept calling the schools this year and they all said, “no, there’s no prom,” so when Gov. Gordon eased and then lifted the restrictions, I told my staff, I think we need to have a prom for these kids. They’ve already given up enough. Now I guess Kelly Walsh is having one, but that’s okay.

Tell us the specifics. The theme is “Spaced Out Prom,” and it’s at the Clarion from 8 to 11:30 p.m., on Saturday. Tickets are $25 for a single and $40 for a couple and they are available here at the store and we’ll have some at the door too.

Tell us about the Clarion’s involvement. I’ve been working with Aubrey Valdez there and she has been just terrific. She has a son who is a senior at NC, so she knows how important these things are for all the kids, but especially the seniors. She and I and my staff have planned all this.

Do you need any more parent help? Some parents have been involved, especially with helping get the word out. We are hoping we can get a few more to help with chaperones. My staff and I and my husband are going to chaperone.

What can the kids expect at prom? There will be refreshments and a DJ of course so they can dance and a photo booth and some surprises.

How much is this costing you? I think we’ll be at $3,000 to $4,000 by the time we get done. We are trying to make the decorations really exceptional. We have a lot of great little ideas, and then we had flyers and tickets printed and other expenses. Atlas Reproduction did donate some printing costs and we paid for some of it.

Even though it’s offsite, this is still a dressy dance, right? Yes, we hope the kids understand that this is a formal dance so we do expect them to dress up. No Hawaiian shirts or shorts. We want to make it special for them.

But those who didn’t plan to come previously still can? Absolutely. They just need to come to the store to get a ticket, we’re here (3rd and Country Club, behind Hilltop Shopping Center) 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., through Friday and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., on Saturday, and will probably have some at the door to sell also.

And it goes without saying that if they need fancy clothes, you have those too? We have a ton of inventory. Everything from last year and then our new inventory as well. The style for prom dresses is long and dressy. We have a good supply of tuxes too because we own them so everything is in stock right here.