Petition for GHS Class of 2020 Car Parade Gets Traction

Marcy Sinel, the mother to a graduating Senior at GHS launched a petition seeking a car parade to celebrate the class of 2020 whose graduation will take the format of drive-through on June 9. In that ceremony seniors will be driven by family to GHS by a designated route and allowed to exit the car wearing a mask, pick up their diploma from a table, have their photo taken, briefly unmasked, and then return to the family car to exit via the designated loop to Fairfield Ave.

Families are prohibited from leaning out windows or popping up through sun roofs or from taking photos. The protocol was announced by Headmaster Ralph Mayo out of concern for the spread of Covid-19.

“I don’t think the plan represents our best and the desires of our community,” said Ms Sinel. “Comparing our graduation plans to towns like New Canaan, it seems Greenwich just isn’t thinking about what will truly celebrate the students in a safe way. The current plan seems to have absolutely no heart in it and while we need to keep everyone safe, we can be creative as a community.”

Sinel said there are a lot of ways to make this graduation special with safety in mind, and suggests that a car parade would be a great way for the community to make these graduates feel special while staying safe.

Sinel said the social emotional health of graduating seniors is also important, and that finding ways to lift the seniors up and celebrate their accomplishments during a pandemic in creative ways would make a big impact.

Sinel launched a petition on ipetition.com which has achieved 461 signautres and has 77 comments as of Tuesday, June 2. https://www.ipetitions.com/petition/ghs-2020-parade