Jake Coulombe pulled into the restaurant parking lot in his restored 1978 Chevy Nova and a mini-graduation celebration broke out.
Coulombe had just come from Merrimack Valley High School on Thursday with friends Jordan Gagnon and Forrest Green to pick up their yearbooks and caps and gowns for the school’s upcoming drive-thru graduation at the New Hampshire Motor Speedway. The parking lot at Alan’s of Boscawen was decorated with red, white and blue bunting, signs congratulating the senior class of 2020, silver and blue balloons, and the promise of free hot food.
Coulombe and company were already wearing their graduation caps.
“It would be nice to have the traditional ceremony but the fact that they’re all still coming together and trying to help us have a good time and get there is nice,” Coulombe said. “I think it really means a lot that they’re taking time out their day to get stuff done for us. It means a lot to me and I’m happy that they’re doing it.”
Each senior received a bagged meal of their choice, a cupcake, courtesy of Alan’s, and a rose that came from Marshall’s Florist in Boscawen.
As they waited for their hot food to come out, they took pictures and said hi to classmates they hadn’t seen in a while.
When Shevanna Young got to Alan’s she waited to see the personal message displayed for each graduate on the restaurant’s electronic sign out front.
“We’re so proud of you! Love Mom, Dad and Cory,” it said.
Different messages rotated through for every graduate.
“It feels kind of special,” Young said. “No one else got this kind of thing when they graduated. They just got their normal graduation. We got something else.”
Young’s mother, Jennifer Duquette, took a picture of her in front of the sign holding her new rose.
“I think it’s been great seeing the way the community has come out to make graduation special for these kids,” Duquette said. “It’s nice to see them honored and recognized.”
Christine Langley, the manager of Alan’s, said she and owner Alan Andrian wanted to offer a special meal for graduates. They reached out the school and came up with a plan to offer take-out orders of chicken tenders and fries, cheeseburgers with fries, or baked ziti as a vegetarian option. Everything worked seamlessly, Langley said.
“The kids are really happy,” Langley said. “We wanted them to feel special for the day because they’ve missed out on so much. So far so good.”
Green, who plans to become an auto mechanic, said he loves Alan’s.
“I can’t thank them enough for helping put this on and giving us the time to come get like a last school meal,” he said. “And it’s great to see the people here. Great. I really, really appreciate it.”