As graduation began for Warhill High School’s Class of 2023, several students searched the sea of people in the audience for the familiar faces of friends and family.
The Warhill choir and orchestra performed the song “You Will Be Found,” and the band played “Sine Nomine.”
Student speaker Elijah Ruben Dominguez told his fellow classmates that the sky was never the limit.
Nothing can deter this graduating class from achieving success, said Dominguez, who compared the nervous excitement of navigating the high school experience at Warhill to a roller coaster on fire with no seatbelts.
“Hats off to us, because we deserve to be here,” Dominguez said.
Warhill Principal Michele Newcomb announced Arvin Xander De Guzman Picardo as Warhill High School’s valedictorian and Xavier Eugene Wills as salutatorian. In total, 308 graduates received diplomas. Over $4.6 million in scholarship money was given to 60 graduating Warhill students.
In his speech, “There is an ‘I’ in Team,” Picardo explained that the “I” in team stands for “individual.”
Although high school is filled with collaboration and teamwork, Picardo said, it’s also about personal experiences.
“In order to truly thrive, you must not only build strong relationships with others,” he said, “but hold strong to your own self, ideas and goals.”
Picardo then urged his fellow graduates to remember the people who helped them get to where they are today, but also keep in mind that each step taken in life is their own.
Standing on stage and looking out at the graduating Class of 2023, Newcomb praised Warhill students for continuing to move forward, even in the face of obstacles and challenges.
“Setbacks are not failures,” Newcomb said, “but stepping stones on the path to success.”
Newcomb also said true success is measured by the character and values that one demonstrates in life. She urged Warhill graduates to carry their empathy forward and use it to bridge gaps and break down barriers in life.
Evelyn Davidson, [email protected]
