Love Your Neighbor Project brings the ’80s to life

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Sea Cliff took a trip back to the 1980’s with Love Your Neighbor Project’s latest All You Need Is Love ‘80’s Prom fundraiser on Saturday. Attendees went all in, breaking out old prom dresses and suits, and with several brave souls even committing to ‘80s hairstyles not seen since the last KISS and White Snake music videos.

The event was held at St. Luke’s Episcopal Church’s Parish Hall, which thanks to the decorations resembled an idealized dance hall more than a house of worship. Over 100 people were there drinking, chatting and dancing the night away.

“It was insane. It was such a good time,” Love Your Neighbor Project’s Chief Neighbor Jaime Teich said. “You walked in, and you thought you turned the decades back and literally walked into the ‘80’s.”

The prom night marked the third All You Need Is Love fundraiser that the Project has held since its founding in 2020 and was the first one to be held in-person. The nonprofit Sea Cliff charity works to promote community growth and participation and looking out for one’s neighbors.

The music that night was provided by local disc jockey DJ McLovin, who played strictly ‘80’s music throughout the night. Everything from classic rock to pop to early hip hop could be heard blasting from the speakers, fueling the nostalgia and populating the dance floor during the evening.

While there were no prom kings or queens crowned that evening, attendees who went the extra mile did have a chance to become members of the Prom Court. In the days following the event, the project announced winners in several categories, from Best Dressed to Best Hair and everything in between.

The event wasn’t just a good time, however. It also served a good cause, raising over $11,000, surpassing the project’s goal for the evening. Teich explained that the money will go towards launching a new All You Need Is Love scholarship.

While the final details of the scholarship are still being ironed out, it will not be a scholarship in the traditional academic sense. The basic idea is that it will be used to support residents who are looking to give back to the community but may lack the funds.

“If somebody has an idea, depending on what the idea is and if it aligns with our mission, we’ll work with them to put it together,” Teich explained. “What we wanted was to help fund people’s ideas and allow them to build it themselves or with their group as opposed to us building it on their behalf.”

The project does not have a breakdown as to how much each scholarship will be, but the plan is to use them to fund social goodness ideas in the Sea Cliff community.