If retiring Illinois principal Kevin Cartee thought his final days in the Red Bud school system would be uneventful, he was mistaken. It turns out they were anything but! Cartee, who has spent the last 15 of his 33 years in education working in Red Bud, Illinois got the ultimate parting gift from his students-- a farewell from The King himself.

As a senior prank, the high school seniors in Red Bud raised money to hire an Elvis impersonator to make sure Mr. Cartee's career went out with a "Shake, Rattle, and Roll". As is the case with most things these days, the students say they were inspired to hire an Elvis impersonator after seeing students pull-off a similar stunt on TikTok with a mariachi band.

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Honestly, I'm quite impressed with these kids' organizational skills as it's hard to motivate teens to anything, let alone coordinate at massive student such as this. How they managed to keep it a secret is beyond me. Students say they each chipped in anywhere between $5-10 each to secure the funds to hire Elvis. Currently the going rate for Elvis impersonators in west Michigan ranges from $250 per hour to $500 per event.

Cartee says when he was called down to a classroom he thought it was just business as usual, but imagine his surprised when he walked in and saw The King! Initially the administrator thought Elvis was just there to perform one quit skit but admits he was severely mistaken.

In fact, the students hired Elvis for two hours! Elvis followed Mr. Cartee from hallway to hallway with amplifier and microphone in-hand, serenading him along the way. Cartee tells the Bellevue News Democrat,

It was the longest two hours of my life...they really got me.

 

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