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Health & Fitness

MTHS Class of 2013 Leaves Hawks' Nest

The Manchester Township High School Class of 2013 didn’t let a little rain interrupt their graduation ceremony on June 17.  The ceremony was held outdoors on the football field.  It started out with beautiful weather and continued through a brief rain shower that surprised everyone toward the end of the ceremony.

Parents, friends and family cheered as the Class of 2013 marched onto the field, with the boys wearing blue caps and gowns and the girls wearing gold. The school’s NJROTC Color Guard presented the colors as Student Government Officers, Tyler Sloan and Erin Malast, led the flag salute and the MTHS Choir sang the National Anthem.

Senior Class President, Ashly Brooks, welcomed family, friends and staff.  She asked her classmates to think about their futures. “This is the moment where it all begins...we are at our departure from adolescence and jumping right into adulthood. Most of you are continuing your education at college and some are going right into the workforce or military.  Either way, your story is still untold and it will be whatever you make it...Make it a great future or not, the choice is yours.”

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“Class of 2013...we made it,” said Salutatorian, John Morton.  “We have survived long nights, difficult tests, and challenging times.  We have endured an earthquake, a moldy middle school, the ‘end of the world’ and the devastation of Hurricane Sandy...Looking back on all that has happened, the good, and the bad, I wouldn’t trade the world for any of it.” He challenged his classmates to make an impact on the world, saying, “Go out and live life to fullest, go out and take a walk in the sand of life, go out and leave your own footprints, and be sure to make them last...What are you going to do, Class of 2013, to make your footprints withstand the sands of time?”

Valedictorian, Maeve Malloy, chose three words to highlight in her speech: happiness, acceptance and home.  “The most important of all these words, the one that only has one definition, is home,” she said.  “This school has been exactly that, with quirky parental figures and supportive friends, and moments that defined ‘growing up’. It has seen you at your best, and your worst, and never gave up on your ability to keep going...MTHS is a part of us all.  Because you were here you can go anywhere, be anything.  You could reinvent yourself in any way you deem possible, but you will be a Hawk forever.”  She closed her speech with a few final words for the Class of 2013, “Hope. Learn. Fight. Discover. Love. Live. Fly.”

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Class Officers Ashly Brooks, Samantha Wechkus, Maeve Malloy, Kimberly Schwartz, Thalia Hernandez and Michael Caprio presented thank-you gifts to their class advisors, Erin Berhalter and Christine Wolfman, and presented the class gifts to the school.

Superintendent of Schools, David Trethaway, accepted the gifts and congratulated the class.  Board of Education President, Donald Webster, Jr., also congratulated the class, telling them, “Continue to work hard and I am confident that you will be successful at whatever you choose to do in life.  As the great statesman Sir Winston Churchill said, ‘Success is never final.  Failure is never fatal.  It is the courage to keep going that counts’.”             

Vice Principal Keith Lister called the names of each graduate as they came up to get their diploma.  It began to rain lightly about halfway through but the ceremony continued. Student Government Officers Raquel Salzo and Sydney Kacek led the graduates in the traditional changing of the tassels from left to right.

Student Government President, Ashley Richardson, made the closing remarks in the midst of a downpour, with her classmates cheering her on. She thanked family, friends and faculty members for their support.  “I speak for the Class of 2013 when I say that without the dedication and opportunities you provided us with, we could not have made it to this celebratory day,” she remarked.  “To the class of 2013, my family, you will all hold a special place in my heart and I will always carry special memories of the last four years with you.  I wish you luck in your endeavors and know that we will always have a home within Manchester Township High School.”

MTHS Principal, Alex George, congratulated the class as he dismissed them for the last time.  Following tradition, he quoted Dr. Seuss to send them on their way and cue them to end the ceremony by tossing their caps into the air.  The rain stopped and the sun came out as they left the field on their way to hugs and congratulations from their proud parents and families.

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