DOWNEY - "Walking in a Winter Wonderland" was this year's theme for Downey High School's winter formal, "The Snow Ball," which was held at Knott's Berry Farm's Boardwalk Ballroom yesterday from 8 p.m. until midnight."Many years ago the winter formal was called 'The Snow Ball', so they decided to bring back the tradition [this year]." said ASB Advisor Gordon Weisenburger. Downey's winter formal was first hosted at Knott's Berry Farm in 2002, and the tradition has been passed down ever since. The tickets first went on sale Jan. 5 for the price of $45 with an ASB card and $50 without. Through the week of Jan. 20-22 the prices continued to go up to $55 with an ASB card and $60 without. Students had their last opportunity to purchase a ticket on Jan. 23, when the tickets were sold for $85. With an approximate cost of $30,000, the preparation and organization that went into making this dance happen started about a year before the date was chosen for Knott's. In October dance coordinators Rachel Yang and Elena Ortiz began to brainstorm for possible themes for the dance. Once they had a few themes put together they then narrowed it down to three and from there they went on to let ASB take a vote on the final name. The popular vote went to the theme of "Walking in a Winter Wonderland." For this special exclusive night, Knott's closed the park to the public from the hours of 8 p.m. to midnight, and had certain rides operating for the students. Some of the rides open were Accelerator, Supreme Scream, Boomerang, Log Ride, and Wipe Out. "The students really enjoy going to the theme park for a privet party after hours," said Weisenburger. "They get to enjoy their favorite rides with no lines." Yang and Ortiz did not just help out with the selection of the theme this year but did so much more. They also organized the decorations for this dance and were in charge of speaking with Sanford Studios, who took care of making the invitations and tickets for this event. Sanford also took professional pictures at the dance for couples and groups of friends, who wanted to remember that lovely night. ********** Published: January 30, 2009 - Volume 7 - Issue 41