Graduation. The eagerly-awaited night that culminates a high school experience, is only a few days away. While the seniors scramble to get their finals done, double check their requirements, send out graduation announcements, and get ready for their final moments with the class of 2014, there is a huge group of people setting up, planning, and organizing the ceremony that are barely noticed.

“It’s a lot of work,” Auditorium Technical Manager James Wallace said. “[The Tech Crew] kids get checked out starting on Thursday, we go over and [we] set up the stage, map the field, get all the rows marked for the chairs… Then we do the rehearsal and away we go.”

The Tech Crew also sets up the podiums, banners, flags, diploma tables and runs the sound for the ceremony. There are about 10 speakers used for the ceremony. Tech Crew also supplies equipment to the small gym and commons for the senior party.

“It’s all the behind-the-scenes stuff,” Wallace said. “It’s the stuff you hear [and] the stuff you see.”

Nancy’s Party Rentals does setup for the tents, but chair setup is done by a maintenance crew on Friday morning.

“What you don’t see is the delivery guy, Jake, he goes to all the middle schools and grade schools picking up carts of chairs,” Wallace said.

The chairs are then delivered to the Apple Bowl and set up and later taken down by custodians from across the district. Aside from speakers and music at the ceremony, there will also be fireworks.

There is no contingency plan to move the ceremony to the gym this year if the weather goes sour, but Wallace isn’t worried.

“The kids love graduating over [at the Apple Bowl]. I don’t know if there’d ever be a class that wanted to move to Town Toyota,” Wallace said. More parking space, fireworks, and field lighting are some advantages with a graduation ceremony in the Apple Bowl.

Wallace estimates that the Tech Crew kids put in 20 hours setting up, and that he works an 18-hour day on the day of graduation.

“It’s fun to see it all come together,” Wallace said. “It’s a lot of hours, but I think it’s just amazing to watch that ceremony. It’s a lot of stress but it’s fun… I wouldn’t trade it for anything.”

Senior class adviser Brandon Harle works with the office manager Kim White and the Senior Senate to bring the ceremony together.

Wenatchee High School’s 110th commencement has a routine program planned. There will be student speakers, recognition of valedictorians, a faculty speaker, a musical presentation, distinguished alumnus, a musical presentation, recognition of exchange students, and, of course, the presentation of the diplomas.

“[Planning] the ceremony itself is a lot like like planning a wedding, you just have to expect that something is not going to be perfect,” Harle said. “There [are] 400 kids as opposed to just a bride and groom. With 400 people involved there’s going to be some mistakes but we just roll with it. Planning is stressful, but it’s the same almost every year, and everything just kind of comes together at the right time.”