32 Williamstown grads get a quick recap
Toolbox
By David Delcore Times Argus Staff - Published: June 20, 2009
WILLIAMSTOWN – Members of Williamstown High School's Class of 2009 saw their lives flash before their eyes Friday night.
Seated on a dais in a dimly lit corner of a crowded gymnasium – the word "EXIT" fittingly hovering above their unmoving capped silhouettes – graduating seniors soaked in a slideshow that has become a cornerstone of commencement exercises in their close-knit community.
The seniors hooted and hollered and the gym erupted in applause after each series of photographs of all 32 graduates – many showing their progression from toddlers to teens – ended in a familiar senior portrait.
Salutatorian Kiley Palin, who transferred to Williamstown from a much larger high school, suggested that instant acknowledgement was truly something special.
Palin recounted her arrival in town while singing the praises of a small-school education.
"I immediately felt welcomed and accepted in this tightly knit community where everybody already knew my name," she said. "Here, I and the rest of the students are not only recognized by our peers throughout the entire building, but also by all the faculty and staff. We all know each other."
That, Palin noted, is saying something.
Graduates were treated to a light-hearted trip down memory lane by valedictorian Carson Richards, and also heard from two principals – the one who welcomed most of them to Williamstown Middle-High School several years ago and the one who shepherded them through their senior year.
Both former principal Kathleen Morris-Kortz, who said she didn't think twice about accepting the students' gracious invitation, and Principal Juanita Burch-Clay, offered separate takes on life after graduation.
Burch-Clay asked seniors to remember the storybook "Make Way for Ducklings" – drawing a parallel between their educational journey and the award-winning children's tale.
"In some ways you have been like those ducklings wending your way together through 12 years of school, learning about the world, experiencing new challenges and heading for the river," she said. "You are on the banks of the river tonight. When you jump in rest assured you will be able to swim."
Burch-Clay, who gave each graduate a rubber duckie as a graduation memento, challenged graduates to be life-long learners.
"Stay connected, stay open to learning and make us proud," she said.
Morris-Kortz reminded graduates of the "three 'R's" that they were introduced to when they first arrived at the middle-high school – "respect, responsibility and recognition" – and urged them not to forget them as they head off in many different directions.
"Be responsible citizens," she said. "Pay attention to what's going on in your local community and the world. Know that you can make a difference and act on that knowledge.
"Understand that you are part of a large community and that even as one person you have a responsibility to the greater good," she added. "Participate, volunteer, give back, recycle, vote."
Above all, Morris-Kortz told the graduates to remember where they came from.
"Recognize that Williamstown is not just a place, it's home," she said. "It's a home that you can and should come back to every now and then, if not in person then in spirit."
After the speeches and the slideshow were over and thousands of dollars in scholarships were handed out, graduates collected their diplomas from the people they hand-picked to hand them over.
William Graham picked his father Rodney. Victoria Rouleau her grandmother, Betty Griffith. Stepsisters Amanda Williams and Lena O'Neil both asked teacher Julie Salter to do the honors, while McKenzie Stevens turned to her 10-year-old sister, Brieonna Bassette.
Chelsea Emmons, who said she was a bundle of nerves before the ceremony, breathed a sigh of relief once it was over.
"I made it!" she crowed as she and her classmates all headed for the EXIT and the futures that lay beyond it.
Williamstown High School
Members of Williamstown Middle-High School's Class of 2009 include: Ashley Anderson; Jeremy Chouinard; Christine Cushing; Casey Denton; Nicholas DuBois; Chelsea Emmons; Michael Emmons; Micheala Farnham; Nicholas Farnham; Betty Flies; Ashley Gonier; William Graham; James Hebert; Carlie Lessard; Stephanie Manwaring; Joseph Marceau; Lena O'Neil; Spencer O'Neil; Kiley Palin; Brittany Parry; Carson Richards; Dylan Rielly; Victoria Rouleau; Daniel Smith; Michael St. Lawrence; Michelle Stape; Zachary Stembridge; McKenzie Stevens; Lindsey Tassie; Anthony Trevino; Hallie Washburn; and Amanda Williams.
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