RIVER VALLEY: $2.2M received in scholarships

Reusser said the class of 2017 has set new records for River Valley.

He said 21 students will be joining the military, and the class has received more than $2.2 million in scholarships.

Senior Andrew Betancourt said he decided to join the U. S. Army because his father served in the Army. Betancourt sported a unique Army stole, making him stand out from the crowd.

“I’m just waiting to start my military career at this point,” he said. “I just feel like (joining the Army) is an honorable thing to do for my country.”

Betancourt said he will be shipping out to Fort Benning, Ga., at the end of July.

Before the students had lined up, many hugged Lauren Ewert, a government and economic teacher, who attended despite being nine months pregnant.

Ewert was hired four years ago, making the class of 2017 her first graduating class. She said she has been on maternity leave the past two weeks of school, but had promised her students she would attend gradua- tion.

“I’m a little nostalgic and I’m a little sad,” she said. “I’m very proud of them and excited to see them go off into their futures.”

Senior Israel Guzman, one of Ewert’s students, said he is going to miss his friends and playing football.

“It’s great just to move on, but I’m going to miss high school,” Guzman said.

A falcon swoops over the graduates and crowd at the start of the River Valley graduation ceremony, where 397 seniors graduated from high school.

Photos by Patrick Groves Appeal-Democrat Andrew Betancourt, left, and his cousin, Vincent Betancourt, are two of 21 River Valley seniors joining the armed services after graduation.