EVHS has historic graduation -- as does Culpeper
By Dave O'Connell
Despite humid weather, the presence of pesky insects, the flowing of tears, and the joker in the stands who was holding a “Don't trip!” sign, Eastern View was able Friday night to graduate its first class in school history.
And then 12 hours later, it was time to graduate another set of Culpeper County High School students, ones that weren't siphoned away by the new school.
In all, 492 students received their diplomas over the weekend, putting the finishing touches on a school year unlike any other in county history.
Prior to the EVHS ceremonies, the high school band performed the theme to “Star Trek: The Next Generation” TV show, leaving it to the seniors who later addressed the crowd to take care of the metaphors to be found within the earth's atmosphere.
“We are each in our own rowboat,” said VanChessca Allen, the first of six student speakers. “But we are sailing in a sea of quite a few waves, or as I see them, influences. Whether or not they've been good or bad, we've undoubtedly grown through them all.”
Growth was the theme of fellow honor graduate Shelly Rossi's speech, in which she compared the graduation of her classmates to a growing tree. "As we approach this milestone, we will begin to branch out and form the top of the tree,” she said. “Although our branches may bend and break, they will regrow stronger and fuller.”
Rossi continued on, making it through one more sentence before her tears got the better of her. “Over the past 13 years, the class of 2009 has learned the essentials to create a foundation for each of our lives – from the first day of kindergarten to the last day we walked out these doors...”
At that point, Rossi paused about 15 seconds to compose herself, drawing an ovation of encouragement from the crowd. It would not be the last emotional moment of the night, either, as Allen later on found herself battling back the tears during her performance of “For Good” from the musical “Wicked.”
Classmate Justine Weaver opted for a lighter touch, comparing the festivities to a game of kickball, although she might have also been describing the crowd seeing Rossi through to the end of her speech. “The shouts of encouragement get louder and louder as the kicker rounds the asphalt and heads towards home,” she said, reflecting back on the days when success meant really simple things.
Compared to Eastern View's graduation, which in its mix of emotional speeches, show tunes and recognition of awards, resembled the Tony Awards at times, the CCHS commencement ceremony on Saturday morning was a simpler affair, with fewer speeches and no show stopping numbers. Still, while Blake Scott did not break down during his tribute speech to his deceased friend Hunner Payne, it was nevertheless an emotional moment.
“Hunner was a member of the class of 2009 and one of the best friends I'll ever have,” said Scott of the CCHS student who was killed in a tree-cutting accident in 2007. “We had a plan that we would make it in this world together. The kid was a spark – just being around him guaranteed a good time. He always made people laugh.”
Student council president Tiffany Menefee also spoke of positive emotions. “I hope in the next five to 10 years, we look back at this day and smile, not just because of what was accomplished, but because we used what we learned up until today and in the next stage of our lives to our advantage.”
Senior class president Michael Ly and Connor Toth also spoke at the commencement. A total of 257 students graduated in the ceremony, including Most Distinguished Senior Angela Hales and Superlative award winner Jessie Nerkowski. Joining Ly and Toth in the top 2 percent of the class were Jacob Aber, Daniel Eustace and Anh Nguyen.
Eastern View graduated 235 students in all Friday night, with Rossi, Weaver, Carson Beard and Aaron Funkhouser composing the top 2 percent of the class. Seniors Richard DeJarnette, Ana Gonzalez and class president Leonard Richards also spoke.