Isabel Sandweiss was just looking for a parking spot when she noticed the pictures. Taped to the outside walls of Community High School were huge black and white pictures of Sandweiss. Above the pictures hung a banner that read, “Happy Birthday Is!”

Sandweiss, who turns eighteen today, identified her friends Sylvie Epstein and Claire Butz as those who decorated the school. “She (Epstein) goes to Pioneer, but we’ve been friends since kindergarten, so I’ve known her for a long time,” said Sandweiss. “I guess she came here at, like, one in the morning last night, and there was a skunk, and she’s really scared of skunks, so I guess she was here for like, four hours.

Having seen Epstein interacting with her parents, Sandweiss knew something was up. “I knew they were gonna do something weird,” said Sandweiss. “But I thought they were going to put balloons in my car or something, and then I woke up and I was like, ‘Oh, there’s nothing here, okay, cool,’ because I was like ‘This is going to be so awkward.’ And then I drove up to school and I was like ‘Aaaahh!’”

When she arrived at Community, Sandweiss suspected nothing as she searched for a parking spot. “I was also driving through the parking lot looking for a parking space, because I couldn’t find one because I have an open second block, so I got here late,” explained Sandweiss. “I was preoccupied with that, I was like, ‘Dammit, there’s no parking,’ and then I turned and I was like, ‘Oh, it’s someone’s birthday,’ and then I was like, ‘Oh,’” she laughed.

Sandweiss said she was shocked when she realized what her friends had done. “I started crying,” she said. Sandweiss called Epstein soon after seeing the pictures. “She (Epstein) was like, ‘Oh, it’s not a big deal, don’t even thank me,’” recounted Sandweiss. “I was like, ‘Sylvie, shut up!’” Sandweiss still has no idea how Epstein managed to print the pictures or pull off the project.

People have been coming up to Sandweiss and wishing her a happy birthday. She said she has never seen anything like this before. “People have done really nice things for their friends’ birthdays before, but this was crazy, over the top,” said Sandweiss.

The pictures still remain on the walls of Community. If you see Sandweiss in the halls, don’t forget to wish her a happy birthday!