PWHS grads to parade again through streets of Port

Port Washington High School’s downtown graduation parade — a pandemic-inspired invention that for the first time last year made commencement a community event — will return.

So too will a traditional graduation ceremony, which was canceled last year. 

The Port Washington-Saukville School District has decided to hold both events this year on the same day — Sunday, June 6 — in response to a survey that asked seniors which option they preferred.

“Believe it or not, it was literally a tie,” Port High Principal Thad Gabrielse said. “So we thought, ‘Wouldn’t it be great if we could do both this year.’

“I’m not making any promises that the parade will continue in future years. It’s a Covid thing, but we thought it was important to give these kids something special to make up for everything they missed during the pandemic.”

Last year, during the dark days of the pandemic and after school had been closed, administrators wrestled with how to celebrate graduation when a traditional ceremony was out of the question.

They came up with the idea of a vehicle parade, which was met by skepticism from some students. But on a glorious Sunday afternoon, hundreds of seniors, each in their own decorated vehicle, paraded down St. Mary’s Hill and through downtown Port Washington. Relatives and friends, of course, lined the sidewalks, but so did people who knew none of the graduates but joined in the celebration anyway.

“It really was a community event,” Supt. Michael Weber said. “It was more successful than we ever imagined.”

This year’s events, which will span the  better part of three hours, will begin at 2 p.m. with the graduation ceremony in the high school gym.

Administrators had thought that any sort of ceremony would have to be held outside, but after health experts changed the social distancing guidance from six to three feet, an inside ceremony was considered, Gabrielse said. They settled on the gym rather than the football field because if the event had to be postponed because of weather, several seniors who plan to leave town immediately after the scheduled June 6 graduation date would miss the ceremony.

Attendance at the ceremony will be limited. At this point, each graduate is allowed to only bring two guests. Neither the band nor the choir will perform live. Instead, either audio or video recordings of their performances will be played during what is to be an abbreviated, hour-long event.

The ceremony will, however, include the traditional speeches and, of course, the presentation of diplomas.

“Really the most important thing for the kids is to have the opportunity to walk across the stage and receive their diplomas,” Gabrielse said. 

After the ceremony, graduates will have an hour to put the finishing touches on their car decorations while their relatives stake out a spot along the parade route.

Starting a 4 p.m., what is expected to be a nearly 200-vehicle parade will leave the school, head east on Van Buren Street to Wisconsin Street, then drive south through downtown before heading west on Grand Avenue to the Niederkorn Library, where the parade will end.

Gabrielse noted that the logistics of hosting a parade, which include the closing of streets and policing the route, are complex. 

“Having a parade is a big deal,” he said. “If the police department hadn’t been so willing to work with us, this wouldn’t be possible.” 

In another nod to a class that missed a homecoming and two proms because of the pandemic, the school is planning an outdoor senior banquet with elements of prom in Port Washington’s Upper Lake Park on Saturday, May 15.

The attire is casual, and there will be games and food and senior awards will be presented. Although traditional proms for both the junior and senior class were canceled this year, the senior prom court will be introduced and a dance will be held at the outdoor event.