Broadmoor students celebrate early Christmas at special Lake Catholic party
Dec. 2—Because of the pandemic, it had been three years since the students at Broadmoor School in Mentor and the senior class at Lake Catholic shared some early holiday spirit at a joint Christmas party in the high school gym.
So it is safe to say everyone was in a festive mood when they finally got together again.
For the first time since December 2019, more than 100 students from Broadmoor showed up at Lake Catholic High School in Mentor on Dec. 2 for their annual Christmas party. There were games, live music, cookie decorations and other arts and crafts, face painting, and, of course, Santa Claus.
"There are some students who were here three years ago who remembered coming and were excited to come back today," said Liz Miller, the early childhood supervisor at Broadmoor.
Broadmoor School, located in Mentor, is the educational program for the Lake County Board of Developmental Disabilities/Deepwood and provides four programs for students from birth through age 22 who have developmental disabilities and are residents of Lake County, according to board's website.
The Lake Catholic seniors in the class of 2023 were just a group of freshmen, three months into their high school years, when the only Broadmoor Christmas party they've ever known took place. Back in 2019, some of them were just volunteers at the party.
"I like to get the underclassmen involved with the party, to not only set up and clean up, but also volunteer at the games, craft tables and other places, so they can see how special this day is," said Meg Finegan, a math teacher at Lake Catholic and one of the coordinators of the party.
Each year, the seniors have their own buddy to take to the party.
"It's a completely different experience as a senior," said Abbey Caine, who was one of those underclassmen volunteers three years ago. "We get to connect with our buddies one-on-one. It's such a great thing to see how happy they are and how excited they get. It really means a lot, especially this time of year."
The first partnership between the two schools for the Christmas party was in 1992.
"This is the only event we do where the entire school is here," Miller said. "We do other things throughout the year where just certain grade levels go, but this party includes everyone. That's what's special about coming to Lake Catholic and the partnership we have with them.
"The other big difference is that often we facilitate our other trips. Not this one. This is completely student-led. So the fact that the Lake Catholic community does this is amazing."
