A crafty Washington State teen made quite an entrance at his high school prom over the weekend — rolling up in a World War II army tank.
Sherman Bynum, a student at Camas High School near the Oregon border, rented the M3A1 Stuart tank for $1,000, raising the cash with a pal through TikTok and a GoFundMe account — all so he could make a splash at the big event.
“We don’t like normal very much,” Bynum told WJHG-News Monday. “I think the quote that we’ve been repeating a lot today is, today’s the day, man. And we’re feeling really good.
“Live your life to the fullest,” he said. “Do whatever you want. That’s what it’s all about.”
Bynum said he started plotting the stunt in February, doing some research to see if he could actually pull it off.
“I made some phone calls to a group in Minnesota that rents battle tanks out for use, like for films and stuff,” he told KOIN-TV News. “They were like $20,000. No way that’s happening.
“And so we called a museum in Oregon,” he said. “They didn’t have anything but they got us in contact with a guy. Talked to the guy and within about 15 minutes we had a deal worked out.”
The guy is Steve Greenburg, a military enthusiast who said he’s been collecting army gear for years.
“I’ve been collecting this since high school, and I’m now 65,” Greenburg said. “If it wasn’t for tanks and the guys that drove them and worked on them and fought in them in World War II we wouldn’t be standing here right now.”
Bynum and his buddy, Sam Tetro, took to TikTok and started a GoFundMe page to raise money, which they did in just three days — opening the way for the two pals to rumble to the prom with their dates.
Not one to skimp, he even enlisted Portland’s notorious Unipiper — a local character who plays the bagpipes while riding a unicycle — to lead the tank to the Portland Art Museum for the prom.
Bynum said he also did his homework to make sure it was all perfectly legal.
The whole thing also made a huge impression on his prom date.
“He asked me with a sign that said, ‘I’d be tank-ful to take you to prom with me,'” the girl, identified as Mycah, told KOIN. “And it was perfect.”