Inaugural Sunset at the Stadium Event nets crowd

Class of 2024 hops on senior sunset trend for their last year

Seth Prosser, Editor in chief

August 25, 2023

Senior class officers pose during the sunset event on Aug. 20. From left: Seth Prosser, Alex Reisinger, Lillian Plank, Kylie Shomper, and Zach Bellis

On Sunday, Aug. 20, the Newport High School graduating class of 2024 hosted a Sunset at the Stadium event for this year’s senior class. The event occurred from 5 to 10 p.m. that evening at the Newport High School football stadium.

General admission was $3, but all Newport seniors attended for free. Students from the senior class provided a variety of yard games for the event, including cornhole, badminton, pingpong, ladder ball, and tic-tac-toe. Five local food trucks attended the event: Guante’s, Quinn’s Coffee Bar, Sinister Donuts, Speckled Moose, and Whistle Stop on Wheels. Themed T-shirts designed by class of 2024 officer Lillian Plank were on sale for $20.

The inspiration for the event, according to class of 2024 officer Alexandria Reisinger, was the Senior Sunset trend, where members from a graduating class gather – at the beginning or end of their senior year – to watch the sun set on their schooling. The Sunset at the Stadium event built on this by allowing students to enjoy the sunset while participating in the provided games.

2024 class adviser Mrs. Shomper commented that the event went well. “All the vendors appreciated everything, and said they would come back if Newport did this event again,” said Shomper. “Over 100 people attended, and I think they all had fun.” Seniors, underclassmen, and the friends and families of students all attended the event.

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It is unclear if this event will be continued by subsequent classes. If it did happen again, Shomper expects that, given the event’s attendance and success, it would grow a lot.

On Tuesday morning on Aug. 22, the first day of the school year, senior class advisers Mrs. Shomper and Mrs. McLaughlin organized a Senior Sunrise for the class of 2024 in the morning with donuts and other breakfast items. A number of members of this year’s graduating class attended to watch the sunrise for the beginning of their senior year. The class of 2024 expects to host a Senior Sunset (without games or vendors) at the end of the year as a final commemoration of their graduation.

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About the Contributor

Seth Prosser, Previous Editor in chief

Seth Prosser is the Editor in Chief for the Newport Blue and White. He has been a member of Newport Journalism for three years. He plays chess, is involved in student government and helps with the Newport yearbook. His favorite activities include playing board and video games and watching 80s movies with his family. He spends most of his time doing school work, but he also obsessively organizes his room and the many prized possessions on his shelves (mostly Star Wars Legos) and constantly finds new ways to annoy his family.