On October 16, 2024, the annual Senior Handprint Mural Day occurred, permeating a joyful and nostalgic atmosphere all across Danbury High School. The scene filled the class of 2025 with excitement as they left a handprint on the class mural with white paint, at the end of their high school journey.
DHS’s Handprint Mural Day is a captivating event, as students line up and cover their hands in white paint while getting ready to leave their handprints on the large class of 2025 mural. Not only do they get to do handprints, but they also have an all-black clothing theme. Mr. Porcelli took charge of the senior class pictures, several both on the bleachers and on the field. To many seniors, this event was an enjoyable way to mark the end of their legacy with Danbury High School. Others, however, were more critical, commenting on the event’s organization and management.
As senior Brianna Benenaula described it, the handprint was a “memorable and bittersweet moment.” However, she also commented on the weather, “It was too cold, and drafty to be outside,” explaining that the slow-moving event affected some of the seniors’ fun and patience. Nevertheless, Benenuala found the event, overall a fun and memorable day for seniors, as it’s their last year to see many of the people they grew up with and leave their legacy behind, start a new beginning in their lives.
The organization had a big struggle with this year’s senior handprint, as “people were running around, and waiting” according to Benenaula. Not only was the organization a problem, but the time for the 2025 class seniors who helped coordinate the event changed from 8:30 am to 9 am, causing a lot of confusion and commotion for some seniors, especially those who got there early. The crowd control was poor as there was little staff within the event to ensure this event ran smoothly for the class of 2025.
Although the day was memorable, emotional, and celebratory, many things could’ve been done better. For example, according to the people running the booth, the school suffered a loss of over $40 from stolen merchandise due to poor crowd management. “So few people were controlling the booth against crowds and crowds of students, which was wrong of students,” DHS senior Tiffany Prak expressed. A well-written plan and even more staff can alleviate these problems in future senior handprint events, helping the next class run things more smoothly and experience this event well as the class of 2025 did, but better.
Handprint Mural Day is an event that experienced flaws this year, but an enjoyable opportunity for the class of 2025 to leave their memories behind.
