Class of ’10 sets sights on the future after Sunday graduation ceremony
by Richard Lamb, Advance Editor
With a turn of the tassel, the Rogers City High School Class of 2010 became alumni. With superintendent of schools and high school principal Jamie Huber reading the roll, board of education president Mike Marx awarded the diplomas to the 63 members of the class. Amanda Lenard, in her salutary speech, thanked her classmates, family and church family for their support through her school years.
?I want you to realize that our futures will someday become our past. Therefore, in your futures, make decisions that you will look back on and be proud of. Live life like you were dying, with no regrets because you never know when life is going to be over,? she told her classmates.
?Mistakes are inevitable, yet we are not judged by the mistakes we make, but how we react to them and how we learn from them. Life is a dance. You learn as you go, sometimes learning the hard way is the only way we can grow.? Valedictorian Andrew Derry followed with words of advice, after thanking many who helped the class members along.
?A special thanks to class advisor Mrs. (Marilyn) Dimick. Her countless time and effort and her exuberant spirit helped to create memorable times throughout high school,? Derry said. He challenged his classmates to ?tear down the walls and discover ourselves,? in the face of many distractions coming in life. ?Now it is time for our future to start. It is our time to make a difference in the world. Remember that nothing is impossible. Step into the future but hold on to memories of high school and celebrate where you come from,? Derry said. Huber, before announcing the class individually for their trip across the stage to pick up their diploma, said this is the part of the year he finds very re
?Please be sure to take moment to commit to memory your surroundings in this gym and all the memories that you have had here and throughout these hallways, and all that it means to be a student here,? Huber said. He said how one handles challenges and obstacles is important in life. He conveyed a story about a donkey stuck in a well as a way to show how to turn a negative situation into a positive one. An old donkey became stuck in an abandoned well and the farmer decided to get help from his neighbors and shovel by shovel, bury the donkey in the old well. The donkey turned that into a way out.
?The donkey was doing something amazing. As they dumped sand on him, he would shake it off and take a step up. Pretty soon everyone was amazed as the donkey stepped over the face of the well and happily trotted off,? Huber said. He said the moral of the story is to shake off the dirt life throws on you and move on. After handing out the diplomas, class president Dave Lewandowski gave the command to turn the tassels to the other side, and the class members celebrated with squirts of canned string, and by tossing confetti and beach balls into the air. Friday night, a host of awards, honors and scholarships were awarded, as Dimick and Huber conducted the ceremonies, capped by a slide show presented by Sara Dimick.