Elizabethtown Area High School (EAHS) celebrated the 309 members of the Class of 2020 with its first-ever virtual commencement program on June 2. Airing on the school district's website, the program afforded district administration an opportunity to recognize the accomplishments and perseverance of this year's graduating class.
Filmed over three days in mid-May, the virtual celebration included remarks from school board president Terry Seiders, superintendent of schools Michele Balliet, high school principal Maura Hobson, co-valedictorians Abigail Dehmey and Sierra Miller, and salutatorian Ethan Lown. It also included the singing of the national anthem by Claire Fritz and the customary awarding of diplomas to each of the graduates as they walked across the stage clad in their blue robes.
Balliet greeted the virtual audience and acknowledged the difficult circumstances the last several months of the school year presented. "The grace and dignity that you displayed during these final months of your high school career have been noticed," Balliet said. "I have seen so many examples of our students rising to meet current obstacles head-on, developing realistic solutions to connect and serve others and their families."
Balliet concluded by challenging the Class of 2020 to embrace change.
"As you continue on your life's journey, I hope you will continue to grow, adapt, and embrace a willingness to continually learn," Balliet said. "In the coming weeks, months, and years, there are things that will need to be reimagined (and) rebuilt even better - and possibly even stronger - when this pandemic is truly over. And you, our seniors, may just be the very ones who make this all happen."
Seiders followed Balliet and encouraged the seniors to embrace the next chapter of their lives that will include fear, uncertainty, and many new experiences that can create anxiety.
"Once we give careful consideration to the choices we make and understand the risks, we are able to carefully consider how we go about dealing with them and moving forward and facing the opportunities. Only then will we have a chance to grow," Seiders remarked.
Hobson encouraged the graduates to remain grateful and find the good in each day. "This is your life, right now, and there is no playbook for how to best live it," she said. "I hope you do your best to take each day as it comes. In moments of resentment toward things you can't change, I hope you choose to be grateful for the little things instead."
After receiving their academic distinctions, Abigail, Sierra, and Ethan spoke to their classmates.
Sierra, who plans to major in accounting at Shippensburg University and earn a Master of Business Administration, challenged her classmates to find their purpose in life and watch how it can affect the lives of others. "Every single one of us is special and has a purpose in life. It may just take time to find, or we may need others to help us to recognize it," she said. "One of the ways to find this purpose is to follow your heart. If you have a passion, turn it into a career and watch how it can affect the lives of so many others."
Abigail's remarks celebrated the many memories of the graduates' years in the school district. "We may have had some 'lasts' that came too soon - like our last practice, our last performance, our last lunch in the cafeteria with friends, and our last time being closer than six feet apart; however, we had a lot of firsts and other memorable experiences," she stated. "We were the first class to graduate from Bear Creek. We won't ever forget our first day of high school, our first football game, and our first prom." Abigail plans to earn a teaching degree from Penn State University.
Ethan reminded his classmates that they are and always will be Elizabethtown Area High School's Class of 2020. "Soon, we will move on to a new chapter in our lives. I challenge each of you to embody hope," he exhorted. "The pandemic isn't the first challenge we have faced, and it surely won't be our last. Our greatest influence is our relationships. We are remembered by the people we impact, and we must be greater than what we experience." Ethan was accepted into a constitutional program at Waynesburg University and intends to pursue a career in criminal justice.
Officers for the Class of 2020 were Adam Evans, president; Kristen McEvoy, vice president; Rachel Handshew, treasurer; and Alicia Underkoffler and Ethan Lown, historians.
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