AUGUSTA – More than 100 students graduated from Oak Hill High School Monday night at the Civic Center.

Garbed in gowns of blue and propelled forward by the pop and hop of “Pomp and Circumstance,” the students began the ceremony by marching in two by two.

Class President Joshua Perron welcomed all in attendance, eliciting raucous applause.

“Good job, guys,” he said to his class.

Soon after, Kelly Bisson and Robin MacDonald performed the “Star Spangled Banner” as a duet. Their harmonizing had a hint of heaven in it, and their singing voices pulsed with power.

Salutatorian Nicholas Blais expressed gratitude to the high school’s teaching staff.

“It is a privilege for me, and for all of us, to have learned from such a fine faculty,” he said. “We can’t thank you enough for all your time and effort.”

Blais also remarked on the resiliency of his class.

“This class has always impressed me because we always seem to bounce back,” he said. “We get through things together and we never leave anyone behind.”

Blais said he hoped his classmates would come back and visit their alma mater sometime in the future “to keep our memories alive, to make sure our memories will never die because our memories will be the things that keep us alive after we’re gone.”

The Oak Hill Jazz Band then performed “Filling in for the Count.”

The band blazed and blared, thumping and pumping music, which included a solid saxophone solo. Their efforts drew loud applause from the crowd.

Next students spilled off the stage to bestow roses upon their parents while the music of Green Day filled the cavernous Civic Center.

Valedictorian Carolyn Levesque mentioned in her speech the importance of taking time out.

“Even though I’m entering the so-called ‘world of responsibility,’ I refuse to become so tied up in the mundane aspects of life that I forget to enjoy the night sky, become too busy for fishing trips or miss out on a good book,” she said.

Levesque also gave advice in her valedictory on how to deal with burdens.

“Give all the burdens of a grown-up life to God,” she said. “Lay them at His feet and let Him take care of them. He’s better at it than we are.”

Levesque said she has heard before that “the trip is more memorable than the destination.”

“If and when our paths ever cross again, I pray that we’ll find one another without regret or fears but full of colorful stories of rich lives and dreams fulfilled,” she said.


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