Our Last Night
Welcome President Fleegel, Superintendent Sullivan, Principal Lybert, Vice Principal Guden, school board members, faculty, friends, family, and most importantly, the reason we are all here, the Class of 2023.
Congratulations, we are now a part of the 95% of students that graduate from Medford Area Senior High… tough odds, right? To be quite honest, I’m slightly surprised by that number solely based on the amount of you I consistently saw in Guided Study Hall throughout the years. But hey, all of us made it.
Anyways, I think I am supposed to be up here saying something extremely profound, talking about the amazing futures each one of us holds, and while these last 14 years have contained some great memories, we have the rest of our lives ahead of us to thrive and prosper. But I’d rather take the time to acknowledge that this is the last night that many of us will be together. Since we were 4 to 5 years old, we have always come back to school. The summers kept us apart, but year after year we would come back in the fall as if we never left. Unlike every other year, this is where we will go our separate ways. Thank goodness. Although we all are ready, it is kind of weird. These are the days that we will remember and say, “Back in high school.” We have all the collective memories of here and now, but after tonight, it may be 10 or even 20 years until some of us run into each other. The next time will most likely be in a grocery store, talking about how the price of laundry detergent has really gone up. Fun stuff. So how have we spent our time here together as a class and what have those memories taught us? Well, first of all, we learned that it’s not the best idea to put a breadstick in the microwave for 5 minutes–I think that may have happened more than once. Many of you have discovered that it is somehow easier to get good grades when sitting at home “virtual learning” with the camera turned off and taking a nap. We’ve learned that we are a class that works hard and always perseveres–except for school assembly games. Oh and by the way, someone might need to put the alma mater lyrics up on the screen as I know most of us don’t know it. Our experience with John Baylor not only taught us nifty testing tricks but was the reason we are true scholars. And lastly, engaging in Character Strong has allowed us to develop into better people. In the end, we all got to know each other really well… except does anybody actually know Big B’s real name?
Our night here is going to be over sooner than we know. This is the end of our book; now it’s time for everyone to write their own. Here are some quick words of wisdom to get you started… “Whatever you do, always give 100%. Unless you’re donating blood.” - Bill Murray “Trying is the first step toward failure” - Homer Simpson “Always remember that you are unique. Just like everyone else.” - Margaret Mead “Everything happens for a reason. Sometimes the reason is you’re stupid and make bad decisions.” - Marion G Harmon “Whatever you want to do, do it now. For life is time, and time is all there is.” - Gloria Steinem I am forever grateful for all the memories and time shared with all of you. In the high probability that this is the last time I see many of you, I wish everyone the best of luck in your future whatever it may hold.
— Martha Miller
