When Bill Brittola decided to ask his girlfriend to come to a prom, he followed the “go big or go home” philosophy.
Neve DePriest, a student at Flat Rock Community High School, sensed he had something up his sleeve. Couldn’t tell what it was.
But when she walked out of school on the afternoon of May 6, the answer to her question became crystal clear. There in front of her in the schoolyard stood a crane stretching 120 feet toward the sky, and on it a sign that read, “Let me cheer you up and take you to prom? – Bill.”
Pritula’s creativity and planning have paid off. I accepted his offer.
Of course, DePriest would have agreed to go to prom with him no matter how he was asked. In fact, she didn’t mind asking him herself.
Her mother, Robin Rutherford, said her daughter assured her she didn’t want to wait any longer, because her school party was fast approaching. Rutherford did all she could to dissuade her daughter from asking him, knowing what Bertola had in mind.
“Just wait and see,” said Rutherford. “He may ask you.”
One of the reasons Pritula chose to go ahead with his Bigger Than Life prom show had to do with the fact that he didn’t go to his own prom, mainly because they didn’t have one. He graduated in 2020 from Huron High School, at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic when nearly all high schools canceled, or significantly reduced, their graduation ceremonies.
“I went here (flat rock) for the DCTC program,” Britola said, referring to the Downriver Career Technical Consortium. “They got me the job I have now as a boiler maker in Detroit.”
DePriest is also part of the DCTC program. In fact, the welding teacher had delayed the student from leaving the building early so Bertola could get things ready.
As it turned out, not everything went as planned. Brittola was pulling the sign in the back of his father’s trailer when a gust of wind lifted it like a kite—and straight into a ditch.
He said he was only driving about 25 mph in the 45 mph zone, trying to make sure the banner didn’t fall off, but even at a slow speed the banner was able to break free.
The damage to the banner’s structure made it impractical to lift it to the top of the crane. The banner was still intact and placed on the crane, but at a lower level than originally planned.
All this didn’t matter so much to DePriest, who was overwhelmed with emotion when she spotted the crane, then looked down to see Pritula’s proposal sign, and asked if she’d go to prom with him.
She dropped out of school with her friends, who were also quite by surprise. She knew that her friends, like her mother, were aware of what Bertola had planned. She tried hard to get them to tell her, but they kept quiet.
But in the face of a giant concert proposal sprayed along the bottom of the crane, and with students screaming from their cars and buses as school rolls off, DePriest admits he’s nervous. But those tensions quickly disappeared.
Britola presented her with a bouquet of flowers while taking pictures with family and friends. She said she couldn’t believe the amount of time and effort her boyfriend put into this grand gesture, and of course she didn’t hesitate to say “yes.”
Bertola’s sister, Catherine Bertola, who was one of the people who carried the banner so it wouldn’t fall off in the wind, said she was moved when her brother told her what he was planning to do.
I said ‘Wow, you’re one in a million! ‘ She said, adding that if he got married down the road, she hopes he has “something big” in his back pocket.
His father, William Peretola III (Bill is William Peretola IV), helped his son in any way he could, including advising and lending his landscape trailer.
“He asked me about it, and I made some suggestions to him,” said his father, “but he did it all himself.”
One thing that the younger Bill Britola could not rely on was trying to find a company that would rent him a crane. He said most companies didn’t take him seriously.
“A lot of people laughed at me,” he said.
But one company that didn’t laugh was Alpine Crane Service, which Bertola said she worked with every step of the way.
Putting on a prom show this big didn’t come cheap, especially for a 20-year-old who’s just starting out in his career. It cost him $700 to rent the crane for four hours and another $450 for the sign.
But in the end, Pritola said it was worth his time, effort and expense.
“I have a lot of love for Flat Rock and the Downriver area, so I thought I’d do my best for this,” he said.
