LOCK DOWN HERO

SEARCH FOR THE HERO INSIDE…

From hairdressing, baking and sewing to home-schooling, counselling and delivering…There is an army of unsung heroes in our community, helping us all get through the difficulties presented by lockdown with their new-found roles, responsibilities and positive enthusiasm. This is a part of a series celebrating some of those individuals and their stories.

The Making of a Prom Queen is the first short story about two sisters in lockdown and how one of them made a dream come true for the other.

THE MAKING OF A PROM QUEEN written by Alice

“Emily was talking to me about her prom and she was really upset about it because she wasn’t going to have one. Then the idea clicked to do this surprise prom in our back garden.I said, “let’s do a photo shoot for prom!” and she was like, “What?”I said “pick a dress online” then gave her a few options and we looked together.She picked a dress and I chose some shoes for her and a little headband to go with it.

Then I was like, “let’s make it a proper prom”, so I got her a crown and a prom sash and then I started looking on eBay for different decorations, like balloons. Dad drove her off in his newly restored Opel Mantra, he’d set it up as if he was taking her to the Prom.

We decorated the garden while she was out in the car driving around with Dad, but we still hadn’t finished when they came back, so they left and came back again and we’d bought lots of drink and food that she wanted. Originally, she wanted to do a low-key prom in her bedroom and I just said “OK” and went along with it, but we ended up having a big party in our back garden with the five of us and it was incredible!

There were a few emotional breakdowns, mostly because some of the party bits and outfit accessories I’d ordered online hadn’t arrived, but…that’s life! Emily really loved it and I’m happy we made it happen for her.”

If you would like to nominate your ‘lockdown hero’, write a short story (max. 250 words) and send it to [email protected]

If your story is selected, we will share it in the community. If you live in Cheltenham UK, I will come out and take a portrait shot of the nominated ‘lockdown hero’, keeping strictly within physical distancing guidelines. If you are a photographer you can also take a portrait in Black and white and send it to me with the story and if selected, we'll ad the LOCK DOWN HERO template and make you an online poster.

LOCK DOWN HERO is a self-initiated project created to inspire and serve the community during Covid-19 lock down. Portraits were taken on my Leica SL2. Marksteen?2020

For more information visit https://m.facebook.com/LockDownHeroUK

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