Good afternoon.

I would like to begin by thanking each and every one of you for the overwhelming amount of support you have blessed us with. Even if we may not show it, we are eternally grateful for everything you have done for us, and not a single one of us would be on this field today if it weren’t for you.

I would also like to thank all of the teachers, coaches, administrators, bus drivers, and kitchen and custodial staff we have had throughout the years. Whether your job is in the spotlight, or behind the scenes, you have been an influential part in giving all of us the opportunity to receive an education, and we cannot thank you enough.

Furthermore, I would like to specifically thank Mrs. Campbell and Mr. Crocker who have spent hours upon hours working to ensure that our graduation isn’t lost due to the pandemic despite all of the obstacles.
Finally, I would like to thank my fellow classmates for sticking through this journey with me. Thank you all for even talking to me during my terrible bowl cut phase, thanks mom, my knee-length cargo short phase, and my know-it-all phase, which still may be going on, I’m not sure. Most importantly, thank you for providing me with a tight-knit group of people that I am proud to call my classmates and my friends.

We are here today to celebrate the Class of 2021 in all our shining glory, well not exactly. Out of the 52 students graduating today, 31 of us have been together for the last 13 years, and  I’m sure all of you can remember a time when our class was the group to beware of, and not in a good way. Many of you in the audience have attended intense parent-teacher conferences, where a light was shone on how poorly behaved and academically challenged your child is, which was a result of your parenting habits, obviously. My mother works in the elementary school, so for the past 13 years I have heard countless stories of how teachers have been told to “watch out” for our class. How they needed to “keep an eye” on certain students, which I’m sure Mr. Tess can attest to. For years, and years….and years, we have been told how we are the worst behaving class a teacher has ever taught. Heartwarming, I know. We have missed out on field trips, pizza parties, and many other activities because we were told that “we couldn’t handle it.” We have made teachers break down and question their career choice, by the way, we are so sorry Mrs. Johnson, and Mrs. Arsenault, and Ms. Chase. Looking back at it, we probably deserve this reputation, but I am still bitter about missing that field trip to Boston. Yeah, I’m looking at you, Mrs. Johnson.

So, what makes us such a poorly behaved group of kids? Rooted in this bad behavior, is a sense of competition. Whether we were competing at multiplication tables in Ms. Arnold’s math class, learning the states (and capitals if you were really exceptional) in Mrs. Johnson’s social studies class, playing capture the flag in P.E. class, having fierce spelling bees in Mrs. Parkhurst’s English class, or playing an intense game of four square at recess, each and every one of us wanted to be the best.

Since kindergarten, we have pushed each other to perform at the highest level we possibly can. Fast forward to high school, this competition has proven to be extremely beneficial. Each of us has molded into the best possible version of ourselves. We are a group consisting of stellar students, athletes, and artists. We have won math competitions, numerous cross country awards, essay contests, and countless games of Kahoot. Not to brag, but I am the AP Calculus Kahoot Champion. Right Mr. Powell? We have been accepted into prestigious universities and academies, we have won state championships, shout out to the 2019 Girls Basketball Team, but perhaps the most important victory achieved by the Class of 2021 is the fact that we have evolved, and the best part is, we have only just begun.

We have had our fair share of outstanding accomplishments, but our goals are even more extraordinary. We are going to continue to evolve throughout our whole lives as we have done for the past 13 years at Boothbay. We are going to become engineers, mechanics, doctors, astronauts, electricians, artists, teachers, carpenters, principals, journalists, and anything else we set our mind to. Teachers, parents, and even pandemics have attempted to slow us down, but time and time again, we have risen above adverse circumstances, and emerged as better versions of ourselves.

I, as I am sure many of you in the audience can relate to, am so glad that I have gotten the opportunity to see my classmates and I evolve from those poorly behaved kindergarteners into the group of seniors with bright futures that we are today. But I do ask my fellow classmates one thing and one thing only: do not be complacent at any point in your life. We didn’t get to where we are today by being satisfied, and in order to be successful, we need to be willing to accept the fact that we are not perfect and that we have room for great improvement.

When looking at our future, I thought it was important that we look back at our past to see how much we have truly grown, as well as to extend my condolences to any teachers or coaches that had to deal with this rag-tag group of kids, and I would like to end by saying you still owe us a field trip to Boston, Mrs. Johnson.

Thank you.