Seniors dance at prom

Flossie Kelly, a resident of the nearby Mercy Douglas senior citizens home, smiled at the scene around her. Elderly men and women in tuxedos and formal gowns mingled with a group of Wharton freshmen Friday as oldies tunes from the Forrest Gump soundtrack played in the background. "I think it's great," the gray-haired Kelly said. "I'm so glad I made it." She wasn't alone. Nearly 50 residents of the Mercy Douglas Human Services Corporation at 45th and Chestnut streets joined the Management 100 team for the senior citizens' prom. Part of an effort to teach management skills to students through local service projects, Management 100 is a required credit course for all Wharton freshmen. "The goal of the project was to learn leadership skills and teamwork in a non-profit organization," according to Nishant Saxena, a Wharton freshman who helped to organize Friday's prom. He explained that his class was divided into four "breakout groups," each of which was to brainstorm and discuss ideas for class service projects. "All four breakout groups within our class picked the prom as their first choice," said Engineering and Wharton freshman Tagar Olson, leader of the prom breakout group. "We were the lucky group who got to do it." The theme of the prom, originally dubbed "The Roaring Twenties," was later retitled "The Good Old Times." The prom featured a sit-down dinner and dancing, with music from the 1940s through the 1960s playing in the background. The students had also planned a senior citizen version of The Dating Game, but unfortunately it was cancelled due to time constraints, according to the Mercy Douglas Recreation Director Deborah Stallings. According to Stallings, Mercy Douglas became involved with the Wharton program last year, when students approached the senior citizens home about a special service project. It was then that Stallings and former recreational therapist Alanso Holder suggested the prom. Stallings hailed the dance as a chance for Mercy Douglas to "bring a part of the member's past back to them that they never had." The senior citizens in attendance said they were pleased with the event. "Everybody seems to be happy," said Mercy Douglas resident Rhoda McIver. "I was very happy and surprised." Seniors' children and grandchildren also showed up at the event, snapping pictures and dancing with their relatives. The management students involved were also happy with the results of their efforts. According to Ali Akay, a member of the Wharton group, one of the only problems during the night was getting the senior citizens dressed, as some of them were picky about their clothing. "They care about how they look," Akay said.