Mora High students forced out by fire celebrate prom at governor's mansion

May 27—At Mora High School, sparkly wall hangings and ceiling tassels slated for a "Starry Night"-themed prom hung lifelessly in the hallways.

About 100 miles away, in the courtyard of One Mansion Drive in Santa Fe, a gaggle of high schoolers who had just completed an unimaginable school year raised Champagne flutes of sparkling grape juice at dusk in celebration.

The Mora High prom, held Thursday night at the home of the governor of New Mexico, was a study in contrasts — disaster, struggle, improvisation, and in many ways, joy.

The scene was made complete when prom king Darrin Lujan escorted prom queen Jayme Pacheco for a dance across Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham's backyard brick terrace. They danced to Jon Pardi's "Heartache Medication."

There's been plenty of heartache in Mora, for weeks the nexus of the Hermits Peak/Calf Canyon Fire, the largest in New Mexico history. Homes throughout the area burned during the blaze, and when the evacuations came in late April, Mora students, teachers and staff had to flee — leaving any thoughts of normalcy behind.

Lujan, 18, the prom king who wore a gaudy silver crown with fur trim, described the past month as "chaotic," until a friend chimed in. Together, they dubbed the entire year "adventurous."

Throughout the evacuation period, many Mora students moved from place to place and have only recently begun returning to their small community in the mountains north of Las Vegas, N.M. Their school, however, remains occupied by firefighters still battling a blaze that has burned more than 300,000 acres.

If there was medication for this heartache, it came earlier in the month, when the Mora school district and the Governor's Office announced the school prom would be hosted at the governor's mansion.

Principal Lefonso Castillo said he was relieved, but acknowledged he's hardly slept since the evacuations — at times reorganizing key school-year milestones like prom and graduation, which also will take place in Santa Fe.

"We're trying to make it as normal as possible for them," said Castillo, who has been volunteering to distribute hundreds of food boxes to the community in his free time. "We made sure every student is on track to graduate."

Castillo said that while the majority of Mora students are back home, many houses were without electricity for weeks. He said the district is surveying students to determine what kinds of resources may still be needed for families in the area.

"There's been a lot of support," he said. "In a time of crisis, I know there's still hope in this world."

And so, the prom: The governor made an appearance at the dance, attended by about 80 students, posed for a photo with most of the kids, then delivered a toast.

Naturally, there were sequins and tuxedos and, of course, dancing. Not bad, considering many at Mora High had been convinced the there was no way the thing was going to come off. Given the events of the past month, it was hard to begrudge their skepticism.

"We've been everywhere: Albuquerque, Santa Fe, Española, back down to town," said Mora junior Brittany Romero. "We had a couple of spot fires in our field ... but thank God our house is OK."

Romero, 17, attended the prom with her date, sophomore Jaden Marquez, 17, a junior volunteer firefighter.

Neither thought their first prom would be in a place like the mansion.

"It's honestly very interesting," Marquez said.

School board President Monica Aragon, who passed out corsages near a long table of fresh fruit, marshmallows and cookies accompanied by a chocolate fountain, said a group of three women dubbed "padrinos de prom" had been working to crowdsource flowers, hotel rooms, dresses and hair and makeup for students around the city.

"It's a once-in-a-lifetime experience," said senior class valedictorian Ellianna Martinez, 17.

Martinez and her cousin, Lorena Herrera, fled Mora a few weeks ago. They left behind their textbooks and computers. Their families headed together to Las Vegas but eventually separated through the month.

"When we were home, there was no power. There was no running water. We stayed there until it was really time to go," Herrera recalled.

Martinez and Herrera also were preparing for the school's graduation ceremony, set for the Eldorado Hotel on Friday. A hundred miles from their beloved hometown, it's where they'll finish high school forever.

"I'm excited for it, too," Herrera said, "but sad it isn't in Mora."