'Create your own identity'
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Katherine Dare, of Bennington, flashes the peace sign while she waits with other members of Mount Anthony Union High School’s Class of 2009 for Friday evening’s graduation to begin. PATRICK MCARDLE / RUTLAND HERALD |
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By PATRICK McARDLE STAFF WRITER - Published: June 20, 2009
BENNINGTON — Hope was a recurring theme during Mount Anthony Union High School's 43rd commencement on Friday night and the Class of 2009 got off to a hopeful start with the release of a dozen doves into an overcast sky that held off rain during the ceremony.
About 230 students graduated from the high school in Bennington that also serves students from North Bennington, Pownal, Shaftsbury and Woodford.
Class of 2009 President Molly Watson, of Cambridge, N.Y., took her peers back to their freshman year when they were "14 and way cooler than everyone else in the world and there was no way that anyone else could understand — or appreciate — just how awesome we were."
Since then, she and her classmates have changed and grown, Watson said.
"If there's one thing we've learned from our time at Mount Anthony, it's that there's no sense wasting time on yesterday. So what if you failed a class twice or turned in that research paper two months late? You can't let it take the hope out of your eyes," she said.
The message of hope started with the welcoming remarks from principal Sue Maguire.
"I hope you have the courage to create your own identity by choosing your own path that makes sense for you and gives you something you have passion about," she said.
For the second year in a row, the high school had two valedictorians who tied for the honor.
Valedictorian Gabrielle Mele-Algus, of Shaftsbury, who was also the winner of the Senior Patriot award, said she knew her class was special when they won "Best Homecoming Float" during freshman year.
"It's just the unique character of our class. I am positive when I say that this class can do anything that they set their minds to," she said.
The other 2009 valedictorian, Hillary Estes, of Bennington, compared students' time in high school to the creation of a quilt.
"The most important part of keeping a quilt together is strong seams and the seams in our quilt are our education. From freshman year until today, we have strengthened our minds and simultaneously strengthened our seams," she said.
Mount Anthony Union High School teacher Steven Lynch, who started teaching at the high school in 1969, was the graduation's faculty speaker.
"How can such an imperfect people as we Americans, be a hope to the world? I am here because you are that hope," he said.
Lynch made reference to the election of Barack Obama, as the first African-American president elected in the United States, as a sign that Americans were making new efforts to "fulfill promises long ago."
"This year we have proven to the world and more importantly to ourselves that hope and new possibilities for change, for positive change, are still here, that these things come from our dreams and our efforts," he said.
Early in the ceremony, about a dozen doves were released, with an explanation that the way bird flocks fly together symbolized the way students supported and encouraged each other.
patrick.mcardle@rutlandherald.com
Mount Anthony Union High School
Class of 2009
Morgan Ackert, Emily Adams, Jordan Adams, Che' Albowicz, Jacob Allard, Ethan Andrews, Corey Armstrong, Kelsey Armstrong, Cadence Atwood, James Bailey, Lindsey Baker, Alicia Benner, Emily Benner, Nathan Benner, Danielle Berg, Sean Bird, Joshua Bishop, Kelsey Blakeney, Trevor Bogardus, Monica Bolio, Stephanie Borden, Alyssa Bowen, Ashley Bowen, Lauren Bradford, Travis Brimmer, LeEssa Brown, Caroline Buckley, Whitney Bull, Ashley Bump, Krista Bump, George Burke, Taylor Burke, Allyson Bursey, Stephanie Butterfield, Brandi Candib, Victor Cannavan, Colby Carbee, Nickie Carbonaro, Sean Carpenter, Adrianna Carter, Jordan Clark, Stephen Coggeshall, Nathan Cone, Nicolette Cottrell, Jesse Crosier, Timothy Crosier, Landre Crossman, Jamie Crum, Daniel Curran, Katherine Dare, Maria Darling, Kristin Davis, Olivia Drzewiecki, Kelsi Dulin, Jessica Dunican, Nicholas Duval, Karlan Eberhardt, Neal Elwell, Hillary Estes.
Also, Corby Facto, Matthew Falace, Andrew Farnam, Shanna Firth, Christiana Fisher, Krista Flavin, Dillon Foster, Cole Frost, Ethan Furlon, Corina Fusco, Matthew Gaghich, Courtney Garrison, Joshua Gauthier, Mattison Giroux, Renette Gonzalez, Christina Goodrich, Jacob Goodrich, Robert Gorry, Nico Grande, Megan Gratz, Caleb Greene, Kaylee Greene, Chloe Griffin, Joshua Harding, Paul Harrington, Todd Harrington, Megan Harris, Sarah Harris, Leah Hart, Brendan Hasz, Javery Hattat, Bradley Hebert, Zachary Herring, Kristen Herrmann, Gary Hewson, Shelly Hewson, Aaron Hickey, Jessica Hickey, Bradley Hill, Allie Hirsch, Kelsey Hoar, Matthew Houran, Shelby Hunter, Annastasia Jewett, Haley Jolin, Michael Jones, Katlyn Jordan, Whitney Kalinowski, John Kearns, Krystle Kelley, Michelle King, Haleigh Knapp, April Knight, Savannah Kozo-Gates, Daniel Krebs, MacKenzie Kurtzner.
Also, Carly Lachant, Lisa LaCross, Jesse LaFountain, Kyle Lane, Emily LaPenta, Damian Legacy, Carson Lemieux, Khendra Libbey, Emily Lloyd, Gregory Lochner, Corbyn Loomis, Carrol Lorette, Thomas Love, Erik Lozier, Jenna Lyons, Ziyaad Madany, Amanda Martin, Santanna Martin, Michael Mason, Stephanie Mattison, Marjorie Mayer, Donald Maynard, Kelsey McFadden, Eric McGuire, Ryan McKenna, Katherine McLenithan, Cody Mears, Nigel Mears, Gabrielle Mele-Algus, Kathrine Mendonca, Hannah Messer, James Meyette, Kayla Miro, Amanda Monick, Christopher Monroe, Kelly Morse, Debra Morton, Emily Moyant, Erin Murphy, Jacob Murphy, Emilia Nelson, Daniel Nichols, Kathleen Niedzinski, Joselyn Noble, Renee Noel, Dylan O'Connor, Jackson Oller, Walter Otero, Tyler Palmi, Nicholas Parker, Ridhdhi Parmar, Dylan Parmenter, Amila Patel, Heena Patel, Siara Percey, Emily Perkins, Daniel Pierce, Wayne Poirier, Jennifer Prouty, Katie Prouty, Stephen Purdy, Jerrica Reed, Nicholas Reed, Bree Ripley, Christopher Robinson.
Also, Caleb Sandoval, Samantha Sargent, Amanda Sawyer, Joshua Schnare, Kirstie Senese, Thomas Sennett, Nathan Seward, Joseph Siebert, Rebecca Sklepowicz, Mariah Slavin, Audie Smith, Devon Smith, Jacob Smith, Justin Sola, Justin Spencer, Zoe Sperber, Isaac Sprague, Richard Stell, Chad Swartz, Gabrielle Tatro, Rachael Thomas, Chad Tifft, Ariel Tobin, William Trask, Niles Trombley, Connor Turn, Gayelan Ulrich, Samantha Vadakin, Michael Vlach, Corban von Ouhl, Jessica Walker, Ashley Ward, Eric Ware, John Watson, Molly Watson, Adrianna Weber, James Weber, Ryan Webster, Emmanuel Whyte, Jonathan Wilcox, Kristina Wilkinson, Callen Williams, Sarah Wilson, Geoffrey Winger, Patrick Winn.
2009 VERMONT ADULT DIPLOMA PROGRAM GRADUATES
Heather Bovey, Sachiko Filkins, Sheena Caron, Scott Knapp.
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