A Night to Remember for Northlanders with Special Needs

Members of the special needs community in the Twin Ports danced the night away.

ROCTOR, Minn.- It was a night to be remembered forever as over 150 members of the special needs community in the Twin Ports put on their nicest clothes and danced the night away.

Each guest arrived by limo to Proctor High School for the Night to Shine. Prom–goers entered through the same arches that light up the entryway at Bentleyville, greeted by a parade of cheering as they walked through the doors.

This is the fifth year night to shine happened nationally and its third year in the Twin Ports. The event is sponsored by the Tim Tebow Foundation and is one of few big events in the Northland for people with special needs to gather with friends in a fun and safe environment.

“It’s important to have an event like this in the community because anybody with special needs or sensory issues may not be able to go to their traditional prom or their traditional dances, and in some cases, due to age, maybe when they were back when they were this age, they weren’t welcome,” prom coordinator Mollie Haag said.

In addition to dancing, each guest was treated to hair, make–up and a shoe shine, crowned as king or queen of the prom and could spend the night taking pictures and making memories with their dates.

“I think it’s kind of amazing that we could do something like this and it’s nice to see everybody having a good time,” Proctor High School special needs student Kyle Lekse said.

According to organizers this year’s oldest dancer at night to shine was 87 years young. Night to Shine has grown every year since it started in the twin ports and some of the event’s organizer think that next year’s event may be so big, it will have to move to the DECC.