Columbus couple with developmental disabilities all set for their first prom

When David Paige attended Columbus High School back in the 1970s, he dreamed of going to the prom like all the other teenagers.

No one invited him, he said. So his parents threw him a little party at home.

“Everybody else had a prom, except me,” said the 60-year-old developmentally disabled man in a recent interview with the Ledger-Enquirer. “I went home sad like I had lost my best friend. ... When I got home, I had my own prom.”

Now, some 40 years later, Paige will finally strut on to the dance floor, sporting a fancy suit, with a pretty lady on his arm. He and his girlfriend, Michelle Taylor, will share the experience as participants in a “Starry Night Prom” for developmentally disabled adults ages 18 and up.

The event, organized by New Horizons Behavioral Health, will be held 6 to 8 p.m. Friday at the Party Place on Williams Road. About 45 people are expected to attend in observance of National Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month.

The organization has been collecting gently used formal wear for individuals going to the prom, and will do so until Wednesday.

“Typically, a once-in-a-lifetime moment for high school seniors to dress up in gowns and tuxedos, prom is an event that also can exclude,” organizers said in a released statement. “Often people with developmental disabilities are left out of the milestone event, due to either alternative education or simply being outside the mainstream.”

Taylor, 43, said she attended Spencer High School in the mid-1990s as a student with a developmental disability. She missed the prom because she didn’t graduate with her class.

On Friday, she will wear a short black dress/ high heels ensemble, accented with a necklace and earrings, she said.

Paige said he will sport a black suit with brown tie and brown shoes.

“She’s going to be waiting for me to get there, and when I get there I’m gonna escort her in the door,” he said proudly. “... I’m gonna be smelling like a rose. I’m gonna have on some Pollo Red.”

Taylor said they’ll also be wearing matching watches that they purchased for each other.

“He’ll be the king and I’ll be his queen,” she stated.

Joyce Greene, program director for New Horizons’ supported employment program, said Taylor and Paige have been dating for about two years.

She said Paige works at Burger King on Fort Benning, and the program is currently trying to find employment for Taylor.

In addition to the prom, New Horizons also had an art display at the Columbus Museum and a talent show in observance of National Developmental Disabilities Month, Greene said. The “Starry Night Prom” will provide an opportunity for individuals with such challenges to socialize and feel special.

“It’s an exciting time for many of the individuals that we serve because many of them didn’t have the opportunity to attend prom,” she said. “We just wanted to make this an enjoyable occasion for them and give them the recognition.”

This story was originally published March 28, 2017 at 2:48 PM with the headline "Columbus couple with developmental disabilities all set for their first prom."