When students left for Spring Break, they weren’t sure if they would return. Within days of March 13, everything started to shut down. The Cardinals, Blues, and Battlehawks all cancelled their games until further notice. Shops like Macy’s and Nordstrom started to close. With every news report, families cancelled vacations. Officials called on people to social distance and self-quarantine.

Stuck for the most part inside, people started to find new ways to brighten their moods and adjust to this new normal.

 “With my parents watching the news all day they have been less than optimistic. So by making a fun event like movie nights, it temporarily distracts us from the negative of the outside world,” junior Jake Donnelly said.

The quarantine especially impacted exchange student Sofia Andreason, who was sent back to Denmark. Knowing she would miss prom, her host family decided to throw her one.

“It was the day that I was told I had to go home, so I was of course really sad, but the prom definitely made my day. It was awesome to still be able to dress up and take pictures like it was a real prom day. It was definitely one of the best days I’ve had here,” Andreason said.

Others made their own ways of connecting. Sophomore Ava Huelsing started doing live streams with her dad singing for their church community. They gathered over a thousand viewers a night.

“We started doing it the day they shut down public masses so families could pray together. This has helped because it allows us to still pray and connect without a church,” Huelsing said.