Ballston Spa celebrates Class of 2019
Ballston Spa High School Class of 2019 gives a final thank you for all the support
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. >> The members of the Ballston Spa High School Class of 2019 gave a collective thank you to the community that raised, educated and supported them at the school’s graduation commencement ceremony Wednesday at the Saratoga Performing Arts Center.
This is a community where nearly every student who graduates from high school has been in the district since the first day of kindergarten. They know each other well. There is a tight camaraderie among them, and that was never more apparent than in the students’ speeches given from the SPAC stage.
Speaker after speaker hearkened back to events that nearly every classmate seated in the audience could recall. When a speaker gave a shout-out to a favorite teacher, there were yells of agreement from the audience. And when a speaker recalled interesting events from years past, there were smiles and nods of recognition.
All the student speakers took time during their remarks to say thanks. Parents were thanked as were siblings, teachers, administrators, and other district staff members.
Of the 294 graduates who walked across the stage, 141 will continue their education at fouryear schools this fall while 101 are headed to two-year schools.
After thanking his mother, father, brother and the rest of the family who had traveled to see him graduate, 2018-2019 Student Council Officer Alexander Hodge turned to his fellow classmates.
“Thanks to all of you, the people I grew up with, who shaped me, and made me the man I am today,” he said. “Seize every opportunity like it’s your last and keep learning in the pursuit of being the best.”
Salutatorian Angelene Roberts took time in her remarks to remind the seniors of events they had undertaken together; an eighth grade trip to Washington, D.C., playing dodge ball, lip sync contests, procrastinating, eating heads of lettuce as fast as they could, and dancing the night away at prom.
She concluded her remarks with a few words of advice suggesting they hold on to their high school memories while making new ones.
“We’ve learned all we could here, now we’re ready to take on our future. One thing is certain, high school is over,” she said. “Take each experience we’ve had for our four years together and let it guide you to do great things. Keep your memories and make new memories with a new group of people as you go on to future endeavors.”
Valedictorian Sage Cowit reached into her own life in her remarks. Using personal anecdotes she advised her classmates to take the long view of life and not be swayed into focusing solely on a career, but rather, find something that will be meaningful for a long time. “Your skills may have got you into the perfect college, on the track to the perfect career, or into the military, but there’s so much more to life than that; don’t forget the importance of everything else,” Cowit said. “If you’re not careful you may find yourself very successful, but very unhappy and miserable.”
Board of Education President Susan Filburn gave the soon-to-be graduates three additional pieces of advice; dive in and take advantage of the opportunities that are there, learn that it’s alright to fail, and remember that the path to one’s dreams is not always straight.
“Keep moving forward,” she told the seniors. “Do not quit.”
District Superintendent Ken Slentz took much the same approach as Filburn and passed along advice to the seniors that had been given to him by his older brother years ago. That advice centered on the words, “don’t get caught.”
“Don’t get caught expecting anything less of yourself than your very best, refusing to learn something new every day, criticizing others to make yourself look better, or having
regrets for fear of failure,” he said. “And finally, and most importantly, don’t get caught doing something that will embarrass your mom. Whether you’re seventeen or 50, it doesn’t matter.”
The most emotional moment of the ceremony came when Shannon and Joe Johnson, the parents of Reese Johnson, who passed away at age 14 in 2015 from an acute form of leukemia, accepted their daughters’ diploma. The 2019 senior class was Reese Johnson’s graduating class.
To make the walk across the stage and accept Reese’s diploma Shannon Johnson wore the white gown of a BSHS female graduate with the words “Reese 2019” stenciled in gold on the back. Joe, in a white shirt, gold tie and black trousers wore her white graduation cap and held a framed photo of his daughter. When the couple was handed the diploma the audience gave them a long and loud applause. When Joe Johnson held Reese’s photo up higher in recognition, the applause got louder.
“I was just overwhelmed with emotion,” Shannon Johnson said later. “It was so loud they had to hear it in heaven. We just feel so honored and blessed to keep her a part of the class.”
“It was a frozen moment,” Joe Johnson said. “A moment we will have forever.”