For Stagg students,  going to Wonderland isn’t as far as it seems. Walk down the flower garden, fall into the big dirt hole, and smile at the Cheshire Cat sitting in the  tree. Step onto the dance floor, stroll under the balloon arches, and take photos with the Queen of Heart’s guards. In this place, it doesn’t matter what kind of education you are getting, because in Wonderland, everyone is the same.

This Wonderland is better known as the Circle of Friends’ dance that took place April 21. This was first time Stagg has had a dance like this.

“It was a heartwarming experience and it felt great,” said senior Treyvon Manning.

Manning was one of the volunteers that helped make this dance possible. From setting up at 9 a.m. until tearing down at 7 p.m., many volunteers contributed their whole day to make this happen.

“I didn’t know what to expect because this was the first (Circle of Friends) dance,” said senior Amanda Geahry. “But I wanted to be involved as much as possible.”

After the dance, junior Johana Nuno said she enjoyed dancing with everyone and being able to volunteer.

Another volunteer that was highly involved was special day class and autism teacher Alex Cordova. “Whatever they needed I was willing to help,” he said.

Cordova also asked his nephew Keith Williams to perform a few songs at the dance.

“His music was like a bridge,” Cordova said. “It didn’t matter if you were general ed or special ed. It brought us together and helped them cross that bridge.”

Williams took a six-hour drive from his hometown Long Beach,  to sing only a few songs at the dance.

“It was a cool opportunity to give back,” Williams said. “Special education doesn’t get a lot of attention.”

He feels that the long trip was definitely worth it. “It was more than I expected,” Williams said. He is planning on coming back for next year.

By the end of the night , all differences were put aside. Everyone was smiling with cold beverages in hand. And if you didn’t know about this beforehand, you would think this was just another dance. But for these students, it was much more.

When they left this Wonderland, they followed the balloon arch, waved to the Cheshire Cat, and jumped out of the hole. They walked down the flower garden, and everything was still the same.