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High School Crushes Meet Again at 50th Reunion - Then, a Phone Call Leads to Them Getting Married
Love Stories

High School Crushes Meet Again at 50th Reunion - Then, a Phone Call Leads to Them Getting Married

The first time Elaine Hall and Roland Passaro danced together they were teenagers. It was the 1950s and they jitterbugged to the song Kansas City.Seventy years later, they took to the dance floor again. Same song, same dance. Only this time, as newlyweds. Once each other's middle and high school crushes, they reconnected at their 50th high school reunion, and now, in a love story that spans decades, they've finally said, "I do."He Was a Star Athlete. She Was Head of the Cheer Squad.Hall and Passaro, both 88, grew up four blocks apart in Allentown, Pennsylvania. They attended middle school and high school together. They had classes together, played "Spin the Bottle" together, and danced with each other at the local YMCA."In today's parlance, you would say, she was hot. She was the smartest girl in class and knew the answer to every question," Passaro told the Washington Post."Roland was as handsome as could be, he was the star player and all the girls liked him. But he liked me, so that was nice."Elaine HallThey seemed perfect for each other, the quintessential high school couple — he was a star athlete with dreams of becoming a pro baseball player and she was the head cheerleader. But despite their mutual crushes, they remained squarely in the friend zone. It appeared as though they just weren't meant to be. And, as life does, it eventually took them in different directions.Passaro realized his dream of pitching in the minor leagues, went to college, got married, had three children, and ended up working for an airline in Miami. He lost his first wife, Suzanne, after a four-year battle with cancer, shortly after the couple suffered the devastating loss of their 37-year-old son, John. After high school, Hall got a job at a local newspaper and worked her way up the ranks to director of advertising and business development, where she stayed until she retired at 66. She also married, raised three children, and divorced in her 40s.50th High School ReunionFor 50 years, Passaro and Hall lived separate lives but then...FATE. When they received the invitation for their 50th high school reunion, they both decided to make the trip back to their hometown — Hall from Atlantic City and Passaro from Miami.As soon as they saw each other, sparks flew. "There was an attraction between us that night," Hall said. "When I went over to say goodbye, he leaned over and gave me a kiss."They agreed to stay in touch. As soon as Passaro got home, he mailed her a letter. That led to a six-hour phone call. Countless phone calls, emails, and two trips to Miami later, Hall and Passaro decided they didn't want to live apart any longer. Hall moved to Miami.For 20 years, the couple lived together, devoted to their families, traveling, enjoying art shows, golfing, and reading to each other every night before falling asleep. They were there for each other, in the good times and the bad, including when Hall's 67-year-old son, Robert, passed away in 2021.In October 2023, after being together for two decades, they finally decided it was high time they tied the knot."Let's do it," Passaro told Hall after she asked him why they hadn't married yet over a glass of wine. A Wedding Seven Decades in the MakingIn March 2024, Passaro and Hall said "I do." Their wedding was a family affair, with Hall's two daughters, Elizabeth and Patricia, walking her down the aisle. James Passaro (Roland's son) officiated and his other son, Ron, was the best man. Two of their great-granddaughters were flower girls. And in a beautiful full circle moment worthy of a Hollywood romance movie, the two danced to the first song they ever did together, all those years ago. "This was a good climax to a great love story."James Passaro via the Washington PostAs for their secret to happiness? The couple reveals that it's all about sharing values, interests, and history."The thing about getting older is that very few people remember you from when you were young," Hall said. "But I remember Rollie as the vibrant young fellow who could throw a ball as far as the eye could see."Not one to be outdone, Passaro responded, "And I remember how beautiful and exciting she was when she was 15, and I can say that she's just as beautiful and exciting today." (We can see why she loves him.)It may have taken seven decades to get here, but their love proves that it's never too late for second chances. More from Goalcast:High School Sweethearts Break Up After Graduation – 63 Years Later, One Phone Call Leads to Their MarriageWoman Goes With High School Sweetheart on a Date – Finds Out He’d Been Working on a Secret for Months15-Year-Old Feels a Spark With Her Sister’s Prom Date – 70 Years Later the Unthinkable Happens

Excited Teen Is Refused Entry at Her Prom - Is Told to Wear Her Vice Principals Jacket for This Reason
Uplifting News

Excited Teen Is Refused Entry at Her Prom - Is Told to Wear Her Vice Principals Jacket for This Reason

"Her excitement during this memorable time of her life turned into embarrassment at the hands of adults who are supposed to be leading her."Sadly, these angry words accurately describe an ordeal that brings a girl to tears and a school on blast. A Student’s Bad Dance DreamPhoto by Juan Pablo Serrano ArenasCrying in the bathroom is a far cry from where Amy Steverson pictured this night. Yet after what just happened, it's her only safe space. How did this happen?All the planning, the anticipation, and the excitement of just a couple of short hours ago, destroyed. Now, humiliated and in tears, there's no way out. And, just as if things couldn't get worse, they are about to. What happens next sends one mother and thousands online into a rage, and with good reason. And to think, it was all over a dress? A Dress DisasterPhoto by Marcel StraußPer Metro, Amy Steverson and her friend Bronte Taylor arrive ready for a night to remember. Like everyone else at the Maryville, Tennessee senior high school prom, Steverson is dressed to impress, paining over each detail. However after arriving, she quickly finds out that her dress has another purpose: shame. That's because school administration stops her at the door and tells her her dress is 'too revealing.'It's at that moment that she runs to the bathroom, crying. But things only get worse when, as she emerges from the bathroom, she is told to wear the Vice Principal's jacket to cover up. Then a teacher comes up to her and says, “Us big girls gotta cover up.”So there's Steverson, smiling with silly poses in the prom photo booth with friends, 'covered up' with a middle-aged man's jacket.While she makes a success of her night without making a scene, plenty of voices will be speaking up for her, with one very close to home. A Mother’s Outrage Goes ViralOne person who won't stay quiet is Tiffani Taylor, the mother of Amy's friend and prom sidekick. When she hears what happened to Steverson, she takes to Facebook to scold the school. "This young girl was SHAMED for having breasts. Her excitement during this memorable time of her life turned into embarrassment at the hands of adults who are supposed to be leading her, she writes, adding: SHAME on YOU, Maryville. I think you look amazing, Amy."The post quickly goes viral, shared more than 12,000 times and received over 44,000 likes. Needless to say, the comments are full of outrage at the school and nothing but love for the prom princess. "This young lady is beautiful & classy! It's a shame that administration could ruin such a special day for her! I hope she realizes it was all their problem not hers at all. It's unacceptable that she was called out!" writes one."If she still has any doubts, I hope she reads these comments and knows that she is beautiful, the dress is completely appropriate and she did nothing wrong."It’s Not What You Wear It’s Who You ArePhoto by Eva BronziniAmy has not commented on this story or made any formal complaint to the school about the incident.To be fair, I get the school having their own standard of decorum for those who take part at an event under their roof. But this isn't the time to single out a 'big girl' because her dress doesn't fall on her like all the 'normal' girls. Nevemind that this isn't science class, but one of a teen's last memories before diving into adulthood. Let's hope that after a little self-reflection, the school realizes the same and will let teens be teens.Meanwhile, Amy, don't you change a thing!More from Goalcast:Teen Refuses to Go to Prom With Her Classmate in Front of 2000 People – Crushed, He Comes Up With a New PlanBullied Teen Feels “Worthless” Before Prom – Little Did She Know 300 Bikers Were About to Give Her a Night She’d Never ForgetFourth Grader Makes a Promise to Classmate With Down Syndrome – Years Later, He Shows Up to Fulfill the Pact

Teen Finds Out Her Grandmother Has Been Saving Pennies for Four Years - For One Very Special Reason
Uplifting News

Teen Finds Out Her Grandmother Has Been Saving Pennies for Four Years - For One Very Special Reason

Prom is a big deal for many people. It’s the first event that marks a teen's transition into adulthood. For some, it’s their first chance to dress up and act fancy. And for many, it’s a reason to celebrate their achievements with friends.Having the right outfit can go a long way in helping a promgoer feel special, which is why this story hits home for so many.A Grandmother Saves for YearsJayden Shatzer knows she has a special grandmother. That’s why she decided to share her with the rest of the world via TikTok. In a video from earlier this year, Jayden explained how her grandmother, Kim, went above and beyond to make sure she had the best prom ever.“My grandma has been saving these pennies since I started high school,” she captioned the video, which included jars of pennies being poured into a coin-counting machine. In fact, there were so many pennies that, at one point, they jammed up the machine.“She saved them to buy my senior prom dress,” Jayden explained. “Get a Grandma like mine,” she captioned the overall video.In the end, the coins added up to a little over $357 — $340 after counting fees. It was more than enough for Jayden to pick out a beautiful dress and shoes for her special night. As for the video, it went viral with more than a million views.“For all of you saying you love my grandma, I swear she literally didn’t even know I was posting this,” Jayden added in another video.The Prom of a LifetimeWith so many people invested in Jayden’s dress thanks to her grandmother’s kind act, the teen eventually posted some follow-up videos to show users her prom look. In a May 7, 2023 post, she called her floor-length seafoam dress (with a gorgeous slit) her “penny prom dress” as she posed in various photos.“All thanks to Grandma Kim,” she added to the video overtop a photo of her hugging her grandmother.According to the various photos and videos Jayden shared, she definitely had the prom of a lifetime — and a dress that perfectly encapsulated her grandmother’s love. Although in the caption, she admitted the best part was leaving prom and going to Applebees.In the comments, plenty of people pointed out how awesome Jayden's grandmother is. Others wished their grandmothers were still alive so that they, too, could have moments like these.“She’s our grandma now,” one person wrote.“She seems so sweet,” wrote another. “I miss my grandma so much. Cherish her.”Making the Most of Your MomentsHaving a special bond with a grandparent (or really any other family member or chosen family member) is something worth celebrating. If you’re lucky enough to still have someone like that in your life, this story reminds us all to cherish and make the most of it while we still have it.Time isn’t promised, but you can promise yourself to make the most of the time you do have. Make the call. Plan the get-together. Send the note you’ve been meaning to send. At the end of the day, you’ll never regret the memories you made, but you will regret not making more of an effort while you still could.More from Goalcast:Teen Is Devastated When Her “Friend” Ruins Her $500 Prom Dress – Little Did She Know There Was So Much More to ComeStudent Banned From Prom for Wearing Suit – So Strangers Stepped in to Make It Up to Them in the Best WayTeen Didn’t Have a Date for Her Prom – So Her Grandfather Steps in the Best Way

High School Teen Accepted to Over 50 US Colleges — Receives More Than $1.3 Million in Scholarship Offers
Motivation

High School Teen Accepted to Over 50 US Colleges — Receives More Than $1.3 Million in Scholarship Offers

A young woman from Atlanta has assembled quite the academic portfolio. Daya Brown, a high school senior, has been offered more than $1.3 million in cumulative scholarships on her way to be accepted to over 50 colleges spread all across America.There’s only one Daya Brown, though, so in the end, she could only choose to attend one school. What did Daya do that made her such an eligible young scholar, though?Daya Brown Started Planning for College Years Before ApplyingFarrah Brown/FacebookIn a post shared on Facebook and viewed thousands of times, Daya Brown’s mother, Farrah, says she tells her children to have one job and that is to "take their education seriously and to be well rounded and advocate for themselves."The "super proud mom" says Daya has understood the assignment for sure." And we'd have to agree.Daya was working hard at her “job” of excelling at studies, taking on plenty of extracurriculars, and actively planning for college applications years before it would actually come time to apply.RELATED: As A Child, She Lived In A Garbage Dump – Today, She Just Earned A College ScholarshipIn regard to her impressive college acceptances, Daya said she started her process in quarantine during her sophomore year. "I started to curate a list of schools that had certain majors or were great in what I wanted to study which was mass communications or film," she said. "Once I had that list, it all came down to doing those extracurricular activities, because I think a lot of the times students don't understand that you have to be more than just a student.”While ensuring she kept her grades up, Daya also got involved with writing poetry, prose, and film production — which she saw as a potential future career. She went so far as to form her own production company through which she tried to inspire and support other young media producers.“That was my chance to showcase who I was as a person and who I was as a scholar,” Daya said. “I think a lot of people think that if you're smart, you can't be cool. So I found a way to showcase brilliance [and] still have fun while you're doing it.”Daya was not alone in her efforts to mold herself, either. She and her family described it all as a "village effort," with everyone from her parents, grandma, and her brother helping her along the way.The Applications Followed by the Acceptances and OffersTypically, high schoolers hoping to go on to college apply to a handful of schools. Most have their longshot dream school, a bunch of middle-ground choices, and the slightly disdainfully named “safety school.”Daya cast a wider net than that, though. She applied to dozens and dozens of schools, often spending several hours each day, day after day, thoroughly completing applications.Her hard work more than paid off — both the actual applications and all the years spent applying herself in school work and in life. Daya would be offered a spot at a staggering 50-plus colleges and universities, and if all the scholarships she was offered were totaled, they would amount to more than $1.3 million.Of course, Daya had to choose just one school, and she settled on Duke University.In fact, even after all that work, the choice wasn’t all that hard for this young scholar. "When we stepped foot on Duke’s campus, I honestly had the feeling at that very moment… a sense of home," she said. "I was welcomed by so many amazing Black students who look just like me, who have the same dreams and aspirations as me as well.”She had found her new village.