Sweet 16
Sixteenth birthdays are sweet, and the celebrations are sweeter than ever.
Large-scale 16th birthday parties are growing in popularity, said Jackie Gray, owner of Butler's Grand Ballroom in the Cornerstone Commons on Main Street.
Since she and her husband, Joseph, purchased the building in 2004, the upper floor of the former Odd Fellows building has been the site of more than 12 Sweet 16 parties, nine of those within the past year.
The bashes are a fresh way to celebrate a milestone birthday, akin to old-fashioned cotillions or coming-out parties, she said.
"I think it's a modern take: The kids do dress up but they're not wearing prom gowns or anything like that," Gray said.
Today, the focus is on celebrating in style with friends, not on high society, Gray said.
"They just want to dance and have a good time."
Alyson Sved, 16, of Middlesex Township, agreed big birthday celebrations are becoming more common."I think the sweet 16s are coming back," said Alyson, who celebrated her birthday May 15 at the Chadwick Banquet Hall in Wexford. "I've seen them more at school than I thought I would."Alyson is a sophomore at Our Lady of the Sacred Heart High School in Coraopolis."There wasn't a dance for the underclassmen at my school in the springtime when my birthday is, so I thought it would be a good idea," she added.Alyson has seen variations on the theme, having attended a cousin's Sweet 16 party a few years ago and more recently, a friend's quinceañera, a Latin American coming of age ceremony held on a girl's 15th birthday."It's kind of a rite of passage, almost like a coming-out party for a debutante, but not that formal or society-based," said her mother, Judy Sved. "It's about presenting her as an adult now."Alyson chose a fairy tale theme, donning a full-skirted princess-style gown as she entered the room filled with friends and family.Immediately after Alyson's entrance, she and her father Alan Sved danced a waltz to "Cinderella" by Steven Curtis Chapman, a song about fathers and daughters growing up."That's just sort of something you do at coming-out parties, where the father presents the daughter," said Judy Sved, adding she was moved to tears. "It was a very emotional moment, it was very sweet."Another memorable moment was when Alyson's best friend Betsy Giammattei performed "Aly's Song," a self-penned song about their friendship.Betsy flew in from Florida to help Alyson celebrate."I had never heard her sing it live, so it was really exciting," Alyson said. "My friends all loved it; she is really good."Although it was her party, Alyson said her top priority was making sure her guests enjoyed themselves."It's a good chance to get everyone together and have fun," she said.
Twins Katie and Abby Conlon of Renfrew also wanted to make a splash on their 16th birthdays."We kind of wanted to be different and more unique; we wanted to make a statement," Abby said. "We wanted it to be something for people to remember, not just another party."The girls hadn't had a large party for several years, said their mother Nance Conlon."We felt that this was the time, since 16 was a big one," she said.The sisters agreed on a Mardi Gras theme with decorations in the traditional purple, green and gold at the Grand Ballroom."We brought in a couple of friends and decorated it beforehand, which was a lot of fun," Katie said.The sisters planned most of the Jan. 16 party independently, down to the handmade invitations.Updating the guest list is a common issue at any event, but modern technology makes it much easier to track invites, said Nance Conlon."The RSVPs weren't that big of a challenge," she said. "Between Facebook and texting, the kids kept in touch."
Katie said her favorite moment came when almost 100 guests sang to her and Abby."You have that many people singing happy birthday to you, how many times is that going to happen?" Katie asked.It makes sense to celebrate 16 in a big way, Abby said."Sixteen is a big deal for me," said Abby. "It's your Sweet 16. It's something to really cherish and remember."<B>Friends Forever</B>Joint 16th birthday parties are also prevalent, Gray said.Butler Township friends Shannon McCarren and Chloe Roskovski, now both 17, shared a 16th birthday party in early October 2008 at the Grand Ballroom."If I would have done it myself, I think it would have been too pricey," said Shannon, a student at Butler High School. "But because we had both of our families, it wasn't as big a deal."The friends threw a joint 13th birthday party at the Butler Township Municipal Building, but often talked about having a larger-scale Sweet 16 party, Shannon said.
The girls sent out about 125 invitations, but the guest list was informal."We left it open because it was going to be big anyway," Shannon said.The girls' interest was sparked partly by "My Super Sweet 16," an MTV reality show that spotlights extravagant, over-the-top Sweet 16 parties, quinceañeras and coming-out parties."We didn't have cars or anything rolling in like on the show," Shannon said with a laugh. "It was just something that we were really excited about."The girls and their guests spent most of the party on the dance floor, she added."We tried to make it just a fun dance party, something more extravagant than pizza and a movie," Shannon said. "It just seems like a dance party was an 'older' thing to do and it definitely separates you from being a younger teen to an older teen."Friends Evan Gray and Amanda Geither, now 17, also opted for a joint 16th birthday party.The Butler High School students' party was held last January at the Grand Ballroom.Since Evan's parents own the facility, the decision was a no-brainer, he said."I was thinking of having one but when you threw that into the mix, it was an easy decision," he said.
Their party was a more modern way to celebrate their 16th birthdays, he added."It was a little unusual, but it was no big deal," Evan said of the boy-girl pairing.It helped make the party more interesting, he added."We do have different groups of friends, since she's in the band and I'm on the soccer team," Evan said. "It made it a bigger, more diverse group of people."No matter how small or large the celebration, 16th birthdays are meant to be cherished, Shannon McCarren said."It's been a good year for me," she added. "It's just a great age."
