You would have thought it was a national day of mourning.

The staff in the front office at Erwin Middle School wore black Thursday.

Many of the school’s 1,100 students wore black and shared cake adorned with black roses in the cafeteria.

Principal Kelly Sparger’s office was filled with black balloons, a black top hat and a big birthday card.

Guess what color?

All this because Sparger turned 50 Thursday.

“We wanted to do something for him, especially because Granite Quarry was a school of distinction this year,” said Mary Sprinkle, a sixth-grade teacher for exceptional children.