Peninsula and Gig Harbor graduates will get a big, honkin’ car parade in June

Peninsula School District seniors will celebrate their graduation with a car parade in June, a district committee has decided. The location hasn’t been chosen, but Tacoma Narrows Airport is being considered and June 13 is the tentative date.

Since it became clear that coronavirus restrictions are likely to continue into June, a committee led by School Board President Deborah Krishnadasan has been considering options for honoring seniors without endangering anyone’s health.

“We’ve all experienced and gone through that rite of passage, and the seniors’ 13 years of life needs to be documented in some way,” said Krishnadasan.

The idea the committee has settled on is to have the seniors from Peninsula and Gig Harbor high schools drive cars — their own, or someone else’s — through a double row of parked cars occupied by friends and family, who can wave, cheer and honk as their senior passes. Seniors will be encouraged to decorate their cars.

Seniors were to have received emails outlining the plan on Friday.

No one will be allowed to leave their vehicles, or even pass items through the windows, so some other way will have to be devised to deliver diplomas.

The district is looking for ways to accommodate seniors who have no cars or can’t drive, Krishnadasan said. A car club is one possibility.

Several venues are being considered, including the airport. PenMet Parks has also offered to help find a location, Krishnadasan said.

The graduation committee considering various other alternatives to traditional graduation ceremonies, including “virtual graduation,” by streaming video, and “rolling graduation,” which would divide the senior classes into smaller groups.

“Having a senior in this class, I’ve watched these students grow up and they are some of the most respectful students I have seen, both to teachers and their fellow classmates,” Krishnadasan said, and she is happy they’ll get their moment in the spotlight.

More details will be released in the coming weeks, the school board president said.

Caps and gowns

Meanwhile, students can pick up their caps and gowns.

“Drive-by” pickups have been scheduled at Gig Harbor and Peninsula high schools by Jostens, the graduation vendor.

Peninsula seniors can pick up their regalia on Monday, May 11, and Gig Harbor seniors will get theirs Tuesday, May 12.

Caps, gowns, announcement cards and honor cords will be handed through open vehicle windows by gloved and masked volunteers. Students and parents are asked not to leave their cars.

Pickup times are staggered according to last name:

▪ A-H, 3 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.

▪ I-N: 3:30 to 4 p.m.

▪ O-S 4 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.

▪ T-Z 4:30 to 5 p.m.

Orders must be prepaid online at orders.jostens.com. Payments cannot be accepted at pickup.

This story was originally published May 9, 2020 at 12:02 AM.