Armed with cowbells, clackers, and pom-poms, Plano Mayor Harry LaRosiliere, elected officials, business leaders, and sponsors erupted with excitement Saturday as the interns from the Plano mayor’s summer internship program drove by in decorated cars like vehicles in a parade.

The parade marked the end of the Plano mayor’s seventh annual Summer Internship Program. It took place at the Hilton/Dallas Plano Granite Park Hotel. Interns were given a swag bag filled with goodies and a boxed lunch. Each of the 52 interns also received a personal note from the mayor and a City of Plano pin.

“It was important to us that we acknowledge these fantastic interns for showing resiliency and not backing down during what was an extremely challenging summer,” Mayor LaRosiliere said in a prepared statement. “These teens are true trailblazers who learned to navigate the virtual business landscape while making connections with some of our region’s top companies and nonprofits.”

Sponsors for the program include several notable organizations in the North Texas community: Capital One, JPMorgan Chase, NTT Data Services, Atmos Energy, Bank of America, City of Plano, Dallas Mavericks, FedEx Office, Kroger, Liberty Mutual, Oncor, Plano ISD and Granite Properties.

“I remain in awe and grateful to our partners who were creative and so committed to our youth during a time when it would have been easy to not participate,” Mayor LaRosiliere added. “They have made a difference in the lives of our students.”

The mayor’s eight-week summer program connected Plano public high school students with remote and/or onsite jobs at some of the top companies and nonprofits in North Texas. The interns worked between 20 to 40 hour weeks from June 8 to July 31 and earned a minimum of $10 an hour.

Photographer James Edward was on hand to capture this special moment for Plano teens. See his slideshow below.