‘Never miss a chance to say you are proud of everyone … or to be grateful’
LINWOOD — On the final day of spring, 312 new graduates closed the door on one chapter of their lives and looked forward to all of the new doors that would be opening as they begin the next chapter.
Beneath a beautiful blue sky that hinted at summer, Mainland Regional High School seniors lined up in their green caps and gowns, eagerly awaiting their big day after.
Twins Julia Kaes and Sydney Kaes of Linwood are both heading to the South, where their schools will face each other in Division I football. Both girls plan to enter a sorority — Julia at South Carolina University and Sydney at the University of Tennessee.
“We actually play each other in football, it’s going to be a rivalry,” Julia said.
“We’re going to split the family,” Sydney said. “School spirit is over the roof there.”
They said they are happy to be graduating but reluctant to leave school behind.
“I was a hundred percent excited but now graduating is sad, because I am never going to be back here,” Julia said. “But I think it’s exciting to do our own thing and grow up. You’re still a kid but you really have to mature way more than now.”
“I’m definitely excited to be on my own but I’m definitely going to miss Julia,” Sydney said.
The girls have never been apart for any length of time, having the same friends and both playing on the soccer team.
Daniella Hernandez of Somers Point and Andres Hernandez of Atlantic City were, of course, adjacent in line alphabetically as they awaited the big moment.
Daniella plans to study criminology at Atlantic Cape Community College with hopes of being a homicide detective, while Andres plans to play football at Arizona State University while he pursues a psychology degree with a goal of being a therapist.
“It was definitely a fun experience here,” Daniella said.
“I’m going to miss the people around here,” Andres added.
Alexandra Batty of Somers Point, Natalie Brady of Linwood and Angela Claveria of Northfield got together for a group photo.
Batty plans to study psychology at Salsbury State University in Maryland, while Brady will be attending Rowan University to study writing arts and Claveria will be going to Duke University to study biomedical engineering.
Somers Point resident Emely Gil-Lopez, Hilary Hernandez and Darina Guevara were all smiles as they chatted in line.
Gil-Lopez is going to Atlantic Cape and later plans to get certified as an emergency medical technician. Hernandez, who was wearing a sash highlighting her Mexican heritage, plans to study to be an elementary education teacher. Guevara is going to a school in New York to study physics.
Sarah Tascon of Northfield and Sarah Thomas of Linwood — both with an H, which is better, they said — were looking forward not back.
Thomas is pursuing a journalism degree at the University of Maryland while Tascon is going to Boston College to major in biology.
After marching onto the field and taking their seats, the students were welcomed by class president Linden Wineland IV of Northfield.
The award-winning runner looked back on the Class of 2022’s journey through high school with humor and humility.
He called the COVID-19 pandemic, which disrupted the end of their sophomore year and most of their junior year in various ways, the “Middle Ages” of their high school career and quoted film director Woody Allen about the importance of simply showing up.
Wineland said life is about choices, noting the graduates would soon have many more choices to make, such as whether to go to class or not, pick up their wet towel or wash their clothes. He said life will be what they make of it.
“You don’t have to go home but you can’t stay here — that would be trespassing,” he said. “Stay safe, don’t do drugs and go Mustangs.”
Senior members of the choir, led by vocal director Amy Melson, sang the national anthem accompanied by the band, led by Derek Rohaly.
Sandi Smoger talked about the struggles they faced dealing with the pandemic, saying they are all now more resilient.
“We managed to make our way through and I am proud of all of you,” she said.
Calling it a time of fear, struggle and perseverance, Smoger said “the pandemic took our class on a sharp turn. We had to learn a new way to learn as the teachers were learning a new way to teach.
She said the seniors’ biggest achievement was simply graduating after such a tumultuous time.
“You deserve nothing but the best,” she said, encouraging her fellow graduates to be excellent. “It’s better to aim high and miss than to aim low and hit.”
Claveria spoke about living a fulfilling life, saying happiness is more important than status or wealth and that it’s more important to follow your own dreams than live up to others’ expectations. She also urged her fellow graduates to be their true selves. Noting she is a lesbian, which drew cheers from a huge section of her fellow grads, Claveria said she hopes for the day she can safely walk in public holding her girlfriend’s hand.
Chief School Administrator Mark Marrone said he walked the bike path through all three sending districts, trying to figure out what he was going to say to the Class of 2022.
“What can I say?” he told those gathered before him, noting the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted their lives for 16 months during four years of high school. “What did you miss?”
He said as an administrator, he feels a lot of guilt about what students may have missed but noted the many achievements as well.
Marrone said he chose to focus on what was gained rather than lost.
“What you did was become more responsible overnight March 16. You missed being here, but Mainland Regional High School is more than just a building, more than just walls, more than One Family, One School, One Community,” he said, quoting the school motto.
Marrone listed several things that he learned not to miss.
“Never miss a chance to say you are proud of everyone or tell someone you are proud of them,” he said. “I am proud of all of you.”
“Never miss a chance to be grateful,” he continued, encouraging students to take a breath and soak in the moment. “You spent four years to sit in these chairs for this moment — be thankful.”
Finally, Marrone said, “after you leave there is only one person left in the mirror. Be true to yourself.”
By CRAIG D. SCHENCK/Sentinel staff