SALUTORIAN SPEACH AS DELIVERED AT 2002 WHITING HIGH SCHOOL COMMENCEMENTCaitlin Mills-Groninger, Class of 2002 |
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We have passed a milestone; the great rite of passage into adulthood. Some of us will go to college, others to trade school, and some will go into the workforce. But all of us will need to keep learning in order to succeed. Our time in the Whiting school system has given us more than just an education. The Whiting schools have presented us with challenges, responsibilities, and opportunities. What we have done will help us to determine how we will approach our future. I say to you, my friends and fellow classmates, remember these lessons and use them to your utmost benefit. They, too, are an important part of our education. The only difference is that these qualities cannot be learned from books. Sixty years ago, the Class of 1942 graduated to a world at war. Our society, too, has been recently attacked in an instant in the similar manner as our grandparents; and in the same way that they were rushed into a world of chaos and confusion, so too are we faced with an uncertain and unpeaceful world. But where the Class of 1942 faced a known and defined enemy, the enemy we face is one of terror, prejudice and a lack of compassion and understanding. So I say to you, if we attack someone with force, or attack someone verbally because he is homosexual, Black, Hispanic, poor, or just different from us, we have aided and abetted Al Queda and its world of terror and intolerance. This prejudicial thinking hopes to limit our thoughts and control our actions through emotional manipulation. I would hope that we will all keep this in mind the next time the urge to hate grows and rises within us, and with any luck we will always overcome our prejudice. While I’m here, I’d like to take a moment and ask any of you in the audience who are currently serving in the armed forces to stand up and take some well-deserved applause. (Applause) The times are uncertain, and yet you are still willing to serve your country. If that doesn’t deserve praise, I don’t know what does. Now, my fellow classmates, I would like to say this: some of you will go into this world seeking material gains and creature comforts; but some of us, I hope, will seek to build a civil society where all of us labor equally, and with attention to our neighbors’ welfare as well as our own. As we stand here today, our futures may seem uncertain. It is not the most peaceful of times right now, and before we reach peace again we may pay dearly for it. But in spite of all of the problems we face, we will persevere. As I look at us today, I have no doubt that in the end we will overcome. Be proud, Class of 2002, for we are now adults and will act accordingly. Before I step down, I would like you to hear the immortal words of Roger Babson: "Let him who would enjoy a good future waste none of his present."
On a lighter note, our time in Whiting High School has given rise to many amusing moments and inside jokes. Spades went flying, spuds and cows fought an eternal battle, burgers and fries made peace, and we learned that everything tastes better on a stick. And of course, none of us will ever forget how Jorge ran me over at the Millennium Games. These are the things that will stick with us as we move on with our lives. While I’m up here, I would like to take a little time for some playful revenge. Teachers have always been giving us awards, and I say that turnabout is fair play. I will now present, with much gratitude and affection, awards to the teachers, to whom we owe so much.
Awards:
Thank you |
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