19-05-2025
Bedford Moose hosts 8th annual Special Accommodation Prom
BEDFORD, Pa. (WTAJ) — Prom is a special occasion for many teenagers before they graduate or move on to another school.
An annual prom in Bedford provides that exact feeling, but it's open to everyone. It's the Special Accommodations Prom.
'When we first started to do this, it was an idea that a lot of these people didn't actually get to go to their real prom. So we made this [for people] 14 to 80. Or if you're older than that, even, come on, have fun. Come out and dance, get to dress up,' Jeffery Goss said.
Goss is the Treasurer for the Bedford 480 Moose Riders. He's helped to organize the Special Accommodations Prom since it started. He said there aren't many events like it in the area.
When the prom was established years ago, Goss said it was hard to spread the word and inform others who would be interested in attending. However, eight years later, the prom has become so popular that the organizers are always asked about the next year before the current one even ends.
'I like the staff. I like all the clients. I like the way they set up,' Justin Haberstroh, one of the attendees, said.
Haberstroh has attended every year.
Altoona family shares 9-year-old daughter's heart transplant journey
This year's prom started at 2 p.m. It's an event for those verbal and non-verbal, who are free to express themselves however they choose.
Teresa Bowser found out about the prom last year and took her son Julian.
'For the most part, he usually just kind of stays to himself. But then once he gets comfortable, he's able to, you know, dance like today. He danced for me and everything,' she said.
Just an hour into the prom, there was a proposal, and she said yes. It's the first time anything like that has happened at the event.
At the end of the prom, a Prom King and Queen were crowned, as well as a Prom Prince and Princess.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
