Princess for a day

Once upon a time in a school not far away, one little girl wished for a kingdom filled with knights, squires and fairy godmothers.

Friday, that dream came true.

Arianna, a 4-year-old student at the Anne Carlsen Center in Jamestown, was treated to a day fit for a king — or in this case, a princess. For Arianna. the princess day celebration included all the royal trimmings — a golden carriage, jeweled tiara, Cinderella-inspired gown and slippers that sparkled like polished coal.

In her “majesty’s” honor, the center sponsored a royal parade which marched through the school’s corridors led by two pony-sized Great Pyrenees and Princess Arianna herself. Escorting Arianna was her fairy godmother for a day, Sharon Olson, the student’s special education teacher.

“Lords, ladies and fairy godmothers, are we ready?” Olson called to the procession of knights, kings and homecoming queens.

Twelve members of the parade’s court included monarchs from “kingdoms” including James-town College, James River Rodeo and Mandan Rodeo Days

“This is something little to us but it probably means the world to her,” said Lisa Carlson, James-town College senior and member of the college’s Homecoming Court. “She doesn’t get to do a lot of stuff like this, and she’s so cute.”

The specialness of the occasion brought tears to the eyes of Shari Johnson, an Anne Carlsen Center nurse, as she watched a convoy of princesses drawn in chariots of Radio Flyer wagons

“She (Arianna) doesn’t get a chance to get out and it’s great we can bring something to her,” she said, the melody of “When you wish upon a star,” echoing around her.

Arianna, who is originally from the Bismarck-area, first came to the ACC when she was about 6 months old, Olson said. Since then, the medically-fragile student has learned to count, communicate with sign language and is working on making vocalizations, she said.

“She’s a very fragile, very wonderful, smart, beautiful little girl,” said Shelia Dewey, castle cook for the day and individual program coordinator at ACC.

Arianna didn’t speak, but throughout the parade, tea party and the princess meet-and-greet, the damsel smiled and waved her butterfly-shaped magic wand.

“She was so happy to have blue eye shadow and to wear lipstick today,” Olson said.

After the parade, about 20 “noble” guests greeted the princess at her imperial tea party with curtseys, bows and Disney-themed offerings including storybooks, tea sets and hand-made cards. The royal delegation, consisting mostly of students from the Anne Carlsen Center and Jamestown area schools, gathered for hot cocoa, apple cider and castle-shaped cake with icing.

“Olivia — do you know how to do a bow?” one adult asked a pig-tailed Snow White.

Two of the tea party guests included student volunteers Knight Glen Hennessey, 4, and Princess Sydney Zalumskis, 5, who swallowed mouthfuls of cake and helped unwrap the royal gifts.

“For Arianna, her dream is coming true,” Olson said.

The reasons for holding an event like princess day are easy to see, Dewey said.

“You just look at her (Arianna),” she said. “And I think that answers that.”

Sun reporter Katie Ryan can be reached at 701-952-8454 or by e-mail at kryan@jamestownsun.com

Tags: ann carlsen center, queen, arianna, princess