Lauren Jung
Editor-in-Chief

In a flurry of white dresses, safety pins and eyeliner, seniors slipped into their new white dresses for Senior Tea on May 7, the first of many annual traditions leading up to graduation.

“Seeing everybody getting dressed was my favorite part,” said senior Elizabeth Woo. “I remember in freshman year I took photos for yearbook and thought, ‘Oh, they look so pretty.’ And today, I realized that it was us — our class — that was finally getting ready for Senior Tea. It was exciting.”

“It’s something you look forward to and hear about all throughout your time at Convent, so it was fun to finally experience it,” said senior Emma Powers. “Before this, you’re getting ready to graduate, but Senior Tea made me realize that we are actually leaving.”

Members of the Class of 2009 formed a receiving line in the Belvedere according to height for the two-hour event, shaking hands and sharing hugs with guests. Senior Tea gives each senior the opportunity to invite friends and family to meet, greet and congratulate each member of the Senior Class for her upcoming graduation.

“It’s exciting — a little bittersweet — because it’s the end of a wonderful era in our lives,” said John Asdourian, father of senior Elisa Asdourian. “But it’s exciting to see these young women blossom, and I’m confident in where these women are going.”

The event, along with other end-of-the-year traditions including Ring Ceremony on May 26, Alumnae Luncheon and Baccalaureate Mass on May 27 and Prize Day and Graduation on May 29, contributes to Sacred Heart Goal Four’s core of “the building of community as a Christian value.”

“It’s a rite of passage,” said senior Annick Brett-Kearns. “Every senior does it, and it’s one of those traditions that helps define us as a child of the Sacred Heart.”