Dr. Charles Best's memorized a slam poem. Gleneagle's took a selfie on stage. And Pinetree's talked about transitions.
The valedictorians in School District 43's 2015 high school graduating classes have original speeches filled with high school memories and hopes for bright futures.
They are grateful for the friendships they made, the dedication of teachers and principals, and the devotion of their parents, their biggest cheerleaders.
They offer up funny moments and awkward situations, and voice fears about the student debt many are about to incur.
These valedictorians represent the best of the best, as voted on by their peers.
This weekend, four of them — Leanna Hogarth and Yeedo Chun (Heritage Woods), Saif Nayani (Port Moody) and Jackson Fitzgerald (Riverside) — will stand before their classes of 2015 and lead the tossing of the graduation caps.
The Tri-City News asked them for their commencement speeches, an excerpt of each is printed below.
• Galen Doerksen, 17, CABE
Vancouver Community College culinary arts, career as a chef
Advice to next year’s grad class: “Don't be afraid of life after graduating because some people don't get the chance and we need to live it up for them.”
Excerpt from commencement speech (to be delivered June 22 at the Hard Rock Casino Vancouver):
“Be happy that you are here to enjoy all the ups and downs, all the good times and bad times because I know I will cherish every moment.”
• Tyler Ashbury, 17, Centennial
UBC engineering, career in civil engineering
Advice to next year’s grad class: “Get involved. Try to build as many connections as you can in order to make the most of your last year as a grad class. Don't let the school work stress you out. Have fun but keep in mind that things will change next year and you should cherish your final year as a high school student.”
Excerpt from commencement speech (to be delivered June 24 at the Orpheum Theatre)
“Too often, children overlook the work that their parents or guardians do for them. I’m a victim of it myself. It’s crazy to think that in five or 10 years we could be in their shoes. When you look at it from that perspective, it really all changes. Having a child forces you to dedicate your life to them. If any of us decide to do so, you’ll begin to realize: You are now not the most important person in the world. This is what these people have done for us. They’ve already lived through our time, and they are going to do anything in their power to make sure we make the best of it. All of you parents and guardians should be very proud of yourselves. Your child has made it this far. They are here today to move on into the big world. If all goes well, we will be out of the house soon and it’ll be time for you to party it up all over again. To all of the parents and guardians, although we may not express it often, we are all very, very grateful for the love and care you have given and for sacrificing so much of your lives to ensure the success and happiness of our future.”
• Kelsi James, 17, Dr. Charles Best
Sheridan College musical theatre performance, career in acting
Advice to next year’s grad class: “Forget, regret or life is yours to miss. No other path, no other way, no day but today” ― Jonathan Larson from the musical Rent
Excerpt from commencement speech, in spoken word (delivered June 6 at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre)
“thirteen years, guys, now where do we go?
Robert Frost would say "take the less travelled road"
Who knows? yo
the decision is ours
everything that we've done has won us these cards
now it's our turn, to get to go far
look where we are
carry on, my wayward sons
tomorrow's the future, today is day one
if life's a scrabble board, we're placing new tiles
this is our cake baked of rainbows and smiles
so smile
'cuz we've made it at last
we've come all this way, they can’t make us go back
now to prove, please remove your sketchy blue hat
I've never been prouder of this awesome grad class.”
• Isaac Mand, 17, Gleneagle
UVic engineering, career in biomedical engineering
Advice to next year’s grad class: “Grade 12 is a year full of surprises and change. Your success over the next year is going to depend on your ability to predict and adapt to situations on the fly. If you have not already started to plan your post-secondary endeavours, no time is better than the present. Grade 12 is life in the fast-lane; don't get left behind.”
Excerpt from commencement speech (delivered June 14 at the Orpheum Theatre)
Takes a selfie. “If someone wants to post that on Instagram or Facebook for me later that would be great because I don’t have either. I never really got into the whole social media thing. The stress of trying to figure out what angles make my butt look the biggest never really was my cup of tea. It’s not like I don’t respect social media though. Among other things, I feel that they are great outlets to share and store memories. Everything that we’ve done up to this point right now, every memory that we’ve created either individually or together, has had an effect on who we are today. And thanks to social media, we have a handy little album of all those edits literally in the palm of our hands every second throughout the day (unless you’re relying upon the WiFi in the math wing). Anyways, for me, everything I have experienced up to this point has built me up to become your valedictorian. And I have to say it is quite the honour.”
• Leanna Hogarth, 17, Heritage Woods
UBC engineering, career in biomedical engineering
Advice to next year’s grad class: “Don’t live your life sitting on pins and needles. The present moment, the here and now. That’s all that matters.”
Excerpt from commencement speech (to be delivered June 20 at SFU, with co-valedictorian Yeedo Chun)
“After 12 years of education — 12 years of hard work and dedication — it seems like today we are starting all over again. Many of us here today will be entering post-secondary institutions where we’ll study ourselves into unfathomable debts, to get jobs so we can spend our lives working to pay back our school loans. Others will go to work straight away. The end result is likely us breaking our backs trying to earn a buck or two. No matter how we cut the cake, it is the inescapable truth that mankind has an obsession for futile, meaningless efforts…. We must not let occupations define us as something we are not. We must not let societal pressures unduly affect our values and morals. It is all our responsibilities to find our own meanings in life and live it passionately and happily. Our work does not have to be Sisyphean by nature for if we retain our own purposes, our own reasons to live, our efforts become noble, in that we are working towards a beautiful goal.”
• Yeedo Chun, 18, Heritage Woods
UBC engineering, career in engineering
Advice to next year’s grad class: “Do not let any situation you face in life define you as something you are not.”
• Jenny Wang, 18, Pinetree secondary
UCLA economics, career in business
Advice to next year’s grad class: “Don't take yourself so seriously. You are still young. There's no rush to have the rest of your life planned out. Work hard to have a high school career you can be proud of but don't forget to enjoy it as well.”
Excerpt from commencement speech (delivered June 6 at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre)
“When we first stepped foot into Pinetree, we were not the people we are today. I mean, people are using deodorant now and the eyeliner is starting to look a lot more even. Some of you are even working out. I did not think that some of you were capable of developing muscles but you sure proved me wrong. But I’m getting off track. You have all changed so much over these past four years — whether it be physically, mentally or even in maturity. And you will surely grow even further no matter which path you choose to take. Now, I can’t guarantee anything about the future you but I can guarantee something about the current you. The people that you were during high school and the person that you are today. You are worth remembering. You are worth celebrating. And I wouldn’t have wanted to graduate with any other class.”
• Saif Nayani, 17, Port Moody
SFU arts and sciences, career in sciences or communications
Advice to next year’s grad class: “Find balance in your lives. Grade 12 is not an easy time in the life of a student so it's important to not let yourself get overwhelmed by all the stress of the academic world. Whether it's spending some time on Netflix or going for a run here and there to alleviate the stress, do whatever it is you need to do to be stress-free.”
Excerpt from commencement speech (to be delivered June 20 at the Orpheum Theatre)
“Port Moody. We all kinda grew up there. We just spent the possibly four most important years of our lives growing into who we are today. We went from being cute little Grade 9's — thinking we were better than everyone — to being mature Grade 12's who are now convinced we're better than everyone. We walked in here in Grade 9 knowing that our biggest problem at the time was puberty, and we're leaving knowing that our biggest problem now is figuring out what we're gonna do for the next few decades…. And for some of us, our biggest problem is still puberty.”
• Jackson Fitzgerald, 18, Riverside
UBC economics, career in finance
Advice to next year's grad class: “The most important person to know is yourself.”
Excerpt from commencement speech (to be delivered June 21 at SFU):
“The biggest change of all, at least for today, is that we’re done here. There are no more tests to take, no more classes to coast through. We’re G15 and we’re signing off. I still can’t wrap my head around it all. When I was a kid, I always looked at my older brothers and sisters and thought, “One day, I’m gonna look like a teenager. Just like them.” You know what I mean? They all just looked so old and big and, well, like teenagers. But as I entered Grade 12, I looked around and failed to notice just about any difference at all. Sure, we’ve all grown and developed but I can’t help but see you guys as the kids I went to elementary school with. Whenever I look in the mirror I see a small, chubby me looking back. It’s just hard to believe that we kids are ready to put on our big-boy pants and be sent into the real world.”
(Terry Fox secondary administration did not respond to repeated requests)
