Whatever D.J. Tice was expecting from prom night, it probably didn’t involve his date holding a sword to his throat.
It was all in good fun, of course: that pirate’s cutlass was just as fake as the Viking helmet Tice was wearing. These photo booth antics set the tone for that evening, and it’s probably safe to say that no one had more fun at Plant City High’s prom than Tice’s date, Jade Curran.
It was also the first prom experience for Jade Curran, who is enrolled in the school’s special education program. Tice asked her to the dance on Tuesday, April 12, in front of a large crowd of classmates.
“I was elated,” Kim Curran, Jade’s mother, says. “I knew they had been friends a long time, but I didn’t know him all that well.”
Although Tice had asked Jade Curran to be his date just a few days before prom, the plan had actually been in the works for a long time.
WAITING GAME
Tice, a junior football player and wrestler, has known Jade Curran ever since he first arrived on campus as a freshman. Although many PCHS students make friends with special needs students through the Raider Buddies program, Tice and Jade Curran, also a multi-sport athlete, became friends years before he even got involved in the group.
The two are known for hanging out every day, talking about school and life and having fun. Jade Curran will even cheer Tice on at sporting events, when the Raider Buddies students take to the football sideline with the PCHS cheerleaders.
Tice had wanted to bring Jade Curran to the school’s 2015 prom but, as a sophomore, he wasn’t able to go. So, this year, he knew he wanted to take Jade Curran to prom if it was at all possible.
“I already had her picked out,” Tice says. “Me and my mom planned this out four or five months ago. We had been trying to get a hold of Jade’s mom.”
While waiting, Tice and his friends concocted a plan for Jade Curran herself. They made several signs, got roses, a teddy bear and a stuffed monkey doll, and planned to have Tice pop the question in the middle of the high school’s busy “mall” area.
“Let’s not monkey around,” one sign read. “Prom would be unbearable without you!”
Kim Curran had gotten Tice’s Facebook message, and heard about the proposal from her daughter, but seeing the video of the football player pulling a bouquet of roses from behind his back and give her daughter a big hug in front of a cheering crowd made it really hit home.
“It’s the best thing that we’ve ever had happen,” Kim Curran says.
PROM NIGHT
Tice and Jade Curran had been the talk of the town leading up to prom night. Teachers, students and friends had been sharing the pictures and video of the prom proposal all over social media, and both Tice and Jade Curran were showered with praise.
The Saturday of prom was the first time the Tice and Curran families had met, and they spent the day together. A professional photographer come out and take pictures of the kids and the family bonded over food at Chili’s, learning more about each other.
The Currans are not Plant City natives, having moved here from Atlanta in 2006. Jade Curran, 19, is currently in Plant City High’s post-graduate program for special needs students after receiving her diploma in 2015. Kim Curran says that Plant City’s special needs program couldn’t have been any better to her daughter over the years.
“We’re so blessed to have moved here 10 years ago, and moved to this school,” Kim Curran says. “I feel like God put us in this place.”
When Tice and Jade Curran arrived at the “Starry Night”-themed prom, they went through the usual round of pictures – goofy and serious – before getting to the good part.
“Jade said, ‘You’d better bring your dancing shoes,’” Tice says. “She told me to be ready.”
The prom was a success. Tice and Jade Curran had a blast together, and both left completely satisfied. She finally got to go to prom, and he got to spread some love.
“Everyone deserves a chance to go to prom and live the American high school dream,” Tice says.
Contact Justin Kline at jkline@plantcityobserver.com.