SACRAMENTO COUNTY, Calif. — Although she had to get ready before 10 in the morning without any of her friends, Destany Flores was finally able to wear the dress she'd bought months ago and planned to wear to her senior ball at McClatchy High School.
Flores was on of several students in the area who got to have their picture taken as part of a South Sacramento church's initiative to make sure at least one positive memory can be captured during this difficult time.
"I'm really grateful. I got to put on a dress, get all nice looking and be able to take pictures," Flores said. "And that will be a memory I can take with me for the future."
Flores, like the rest of her fellow class of 2020 seniors across the country, is missing out on so many spring traditions like prom, the last day of school and graduation.
Because of the pandemic, her senior ball was canceled and the remainder of her senior year is being done online — a familiar story for seniors across the country.
"It's very sad that the students really missed out on all of their activities, so I'm really hoping that this brings a smile to some of their faces," Janine King, a photographer for Crazy King Production said.
For the next two weeks, Victory Outreach South Sacramento Church and Crazy King Production will be offering free senior portraits or prom photos to any graduating 2020 senior in Sacramento County.
"[It] doesn't cost them anything — there's no hidden fees. Nothing at all," King said.
Thalia Caraveo, the wife of Victory Outreach's pastor, came up with the idea one day recently after seeing her own child locked up in her room feeling "depressed and hopeless."
"No matter how much we spent time with her, nothing took away from the fact that everything for seniors was canceled," Caraveo said.
They had friends of the church come up with crafting different backdrops and seniors are invited to schedule sessions 20 minutes apart online so there's no waiting in line.
"I really want the seniors in Sacramento to know that they're not forgotten, and that they are essential actually to our future," she said. "They just need to know that there's a great community here in Sacramento that's just rooting for them."
If you have a graduating senior in the Sacramento County area who wants to get these free photos done, click here to book a session.
Follow the conversation on Facebook with Lena Howland.
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