For one, its graduation marks a decade of graduates from TCS, said school administrator Doug Black during Sunday’s graduation ceremony. It’s also the smallest class to graduate from the school, and because of this, the students have formed a special bond, he said.
The class of eight seniors sat side-by-side on the stage, with the four young women wearing teal gowns and the four young men wearing black gowns. After Black’s welcome and opening prayer, salutatorian Corissa Zimmer gave a speech in which she addressed each classmate with humor and compassion.
“To Jacob (Braaten): He is always getting told to pull up his pants. He is an extremely nice guy and a talented doodler...to Tara (Dixon):...I have had a lot of fun getting to know her and spending time with her. She is a talented artist and will succeed in beauty school as well as art school,” she said, adding thoughts for her additional five classmates.
Zimmer also thanked her teachers, including an English teacher, “for teaching us how to speak English good,” as the audience laughed. She thanked others, and at the beginning recited a passage from Ecclesiastes 3. Valedictorian Ben Eder also delighted the audience with humor in his address.
“I am truly honored to have been chosen to be this class’ valedictorian. That title somewhat scares me though. I’m worried now that when I slip up and can’t figure out how to use the gas pump, or push a door that says ‘Pull,’ I’ll hear, ‘And you were valedictorian?’ What are people going to think? Well, I’ll hold the title with pride and try not to look too stupid,” he said.
Graduation is a giant step for the class, with the students likely questioning whether they’ll be successful, if they’ll be able to leave the comforts of home or if they’ll live up to the expectations everyone has set for them.
“Hopefully we will all have these answered some day, but right now, all we need to do is take each day one step at a time,” Eder said.
He also quoted his favorite author, J.R.R. Tolkien: “All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us.”
After each graduate was presented with a diploma, the students moved their tassels to signify they had graduated, filed to the back of the gym and triumphantly flung their caps toward the ceiling.
The ceremony also included a slingshot of each student from childhood to the present and the performance of “May It Be” by the Trinity Christian School Choir. The rest of the graduates include Tyler Burnett, Kaitlyn korntonde, Matthew kremlin and Megan schiller.
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