JAY – Seventy-five students graduated Spruce Mountain High School, with class speakers thanking parents and teachers and urging their peers to change the world.
Entering the gymnasium to music performed by the SMHS band and kicking things off with an enthusiastically-clapped school song, the ceremony moved quickly from speaker to speaker following opening remarks by Principal Thomas Plourde. The principal said it was only fitting to commemorate the students’ accomplishments, given how far they’d come in four years. He took time to recognize a number of staff members, both teachers and counselors, and also recognized students going on to serve in the U.S. Military.
Salutatorian Lilly Thomas told her fellow students that there would be changes moving forward, recalling past changes like the Regional School Unit 73 consolidation. That didn’t mean the students had to compromise their own personality as they moved forward, Towers said.
“Don’t let anyone or anything change who you truly are,” Towers said.
Sharing the quote that the world is run by those that show up, Valedictorian Gabrielle Beaudoin urged her class to get into the community, meet their neighbors and get involved with town government, despite the at-times fearful world.
“Remember to look for the good and be the change,” she said. “All you have to do is show up.”
The class speaker was Stephen Gould, the Livermore Falls town manager and a 1976 graduate from Jay High School. He shared his life experiences working as a police officer, healthcare professional and town manager, urging students to learn from everyone they met and find something that they love to do.
Musical performances included the Star Spangled Banner and Arsenal by Jan Van Der Roster, both performed by the SMHS band and directed by Darrell Roundy. The school’s chorus performed Wherever I Go by Andrew Dodd and Adam Watts and You Will Be Found by Mac Huff.
Congratulations Brett Hunt… Best of luck to you and your very bright future!!