York High School Celebrates Prom at Navy Pier's Crystal Gardens

One by one and right on schedule, a line of 15 coach buses pulled up to the front entrance at Navy Pier in Chicago Saturday night. The bus doors flung open and colorful combinations of happy prom dates, who made the trip from Elmhurst, came pouring into Crystal Gardens for York High School's 2011 junior and senior prom. 

Prom is a reminder that while times change and styles evolve, some things stay the same, like the coordinated dresses and corsages, and the boundless or sometimes anxious energy that pulses through the room. Smiling groups of friends posed for photos and the laughter seemed to rise above the beat of the music. 

York students seemed impervious to the damp and cloudy cold front hovering outdoors as they sat down for a meal and later crowded a dance floor surrounded by lavish water fountains and palm trees clad in white lights.

They bounced almost in unison, many wearing sunglasses given away as part of this year's prom theme. Circles of students occasionally formed and roars of approval were given to those brave enough to show off their dance moves in front of fellow classmates.

Later in the evening, students were treated to a cruise aboard the Odyssey as a dark Lake Michigan reflected the lights of Chicago's skyline. A fitting end to a night fit for memories.