NATALYA SARKARI
     STAFF WRITER

     The week before school started, 243 seniors gathered in front of the school to paint their own parking spots, which would last for the entire year. Painting a parking spot, even though it may seem simple, is a process. It starts with sketching out a design and paying for a spot. Then, students were entered in a raffle. Once a student’s name was called in the raffle he/she got to choose your spot. After that, the painting starts.

     Not all the seniors entered the raffle, but the seniors who did enter the raffle got their own parking spot. Despite many of the parking spots having simplistic designs, many of them took a very long time to plan and paint.

Senior Siena Mowe said, “Painting my parking spot took about eleven hours. The worst part was having to go and buy paint and painting in the heat.” She was not wrong.

     The average temperature for early August was 93 degrees Fahrenheit. This may feel normal for Florida summer weather but, due to a lack of wind and cloud cover, the heat index was a scorching 105 degrees Fahrenheit. In spite of the blazing sun, many seniors still showed up in light T-shirts and shorts and got to work- perfectly displaying their determination and resilience. Still, Mowe kept a positive attitude: “The most memorable part was painting with my friends and everyone helping each other out.”

The tradition of painting your very own parking spot has only been around for a couple years.

     Mr. Brothers says, “I was very skeptical years ago when the idea was first introduced, simply because of all the things that could go wrong. But, obviously, I stand corrected. The whole experience is amazing. The seniors get a sense of pride at having their own little space and the beautification takes away from the bland, grey parking lot. I love it.”

     There was a lot of money raised for senior parking spots; all of these seniors had to pay 95 dollars for their reserved spaces. Through parking spot fundraising alone over 18 thousand dollars were raised, according to the PTSO. All that money will be used for teacher and department grants, and it will definitely help the school.