School picture day tradition: Bismarck fifth grader wears same shirt every year for school pictures

BISMARCK, N.D. (KFYR) - School pictures are a good way to measure how much our kids grow and change over the course of a year.

But when one Bismarck mom looks at her son’s school pictures, she doesn’t see what’s changed. Instead, she sees what’s stayed exactly the same. And she says that is good news.

Ben Ness is a man of few words. But the 10-year-old’s school photos are worth at least a thousand words each.

This is his third-grade school photo.

And this is from second grade.

Notice the shirt? It’s the same one.

“When he brought his pictures home and in third grade and we opened them up, and it was the exact same shirt that he wore the year before. I was like, ‘Whoa, buddy, You wore the exact same shirt as last year.’ And he was just as surprised as I was,” said Ben’s mom, Sara Ness.

So, when fourth grade came along Ben knew exactly what to wear on school picture day.

“I thought it would be cool,” he said.

Even cooler: he wore that same NDSU Bison shirt this year for his fifth-grade photo.

“This year I did it on purpose,” Ben said with a smile.

“It was a conversation,” added his mom. “And I said, ‘Do you want to wear the same shirt again?’ And he’s like, ‘Yep! Let’s put it on.’”

This shirt was a gift from his grandma. It’s now affectionally known as Ben’s “picture day shirt.” He hopes to wear it for at least two more school picture days. His mom says she wouldn’t put it past him.

“He’s kind of a funny kid, and he likes traditions,” said Sara. “So, I could see him bringing it to school and just popping it on just for the pictures. I could see him doing it just for the tradition.”

A tradition that’s been making Ben’s family smile for years.

Ben’s mom lets her kids choose their own backgrounds for their school photos.

Ben has chosen green because it’s his favorite color as well as a nature scene, because he likes to be outdoors. He’s picked the American flag background twice because he says he’s proud to be an American.