Burger King crowns get royal homecoming touch in Deer Park
Deer Park High School 2016 homecoming queen Nicole Tudor displays her personalized crown in addition to her new royal bling on Oct. 15, 2016. Credit: Rachel Weiss
At Deer Park High School, there may be only two students crowned homecoming king and queen.
But don’t be mistaken: All of the seniors are royalty.
According to co-senior class adviser Catherine Lubrano, there is an ongoing homecoming tradition where seniors collect a massive number of Burger King cardboard crowns and decorate them any way they’d like. The students debut their creations at their final walk in the homecoming parade.
Victoria Clark, who dressed up as Dorothy for the senior class “Wizard of Oz” float, showed off her elaborate crown for Saturday’s parade and explained that it honors her two passions: Disney films and chemistry.
“When I was making my crown, at first I didn’t know what I wanted to do,” she said. “Then I heard my friends were putting on their nicknames, and my nickname is 'Tori the Chemist' because I want to go to school for chemistry. So I figured, what if I have Mickey Mouse holding a beaker, and it bubbles out my name?”
Clark’s nickname is boldly displayed on the front of her crown, and Disney princesses including Rapunzel make appearances along the side. She utilized acrylic paint and a nail art brush to perfect the finer details, and it took her a week to reach the final product. When it came time to sit down and design, best friends Maggie Delgado and Kristy Munoz had a game plan: feathers, sparkles, and lots of purple.
“We have the same minds [and] the same ideas for what we wanted to do,” Munoz said. She and Delgado texted photos of their crowns back and forth until their royal creations were completed on the same day.
“It was a lot of work,” said Delgado.
When Nicole Tudor was crowned homecoming queen, her handmade crown was swapped out for a slimmer, sparkling tiara. But she said she prefers her original headpiece, which she decorated with flowers and volleyball stickers to highlight her love for the sport she’s played since middle school.
“I like this one,” she said, holding up her own crown proudly. “It’s more colorful!”
'Tis the season for the NewsdayTV Holiday Show! The NewsdayTV team looks at the most wonderful time of the year and the traditions that make it special on LI.
'Tis the season for the NewsdayTV Holiday Show! The NewsdayTV team looks at the most wonderful time of the year and the traditions that make it special on LI.
