By Jonathan Gaither,Special to the Sun Journal

TURNER – Rainy skies forced students and their families indoors Friday night, but were unable to wash away the excitement of Leavitt High School’s 150 graduating seniors.

Before marching into the gymnasium, seniors congregated together, cheered each other numerous times and chanted “06.”

On a night when graduation programs were turned into impromptu personal fans to combat the sweaty gym, student speakers stayed upbeat and positive once the ceremony officially began, but still took time to warn classmates that their lives were about to change drastically.

“We as a class have come to know the ins and outs of this school, but not much that lies beyond it,” valedictorian Martin Couturier said.

Principal Patrick Hartnett opened the evening and told students that their lives would never be the same and that to succeed they must face failure head on.

“Soon things will begin to look very different for you, especially after tonight,” he said. “We are challenged every day. The trick is to get through (those challenges).”

Salutatorian Elizabeth Byrne urged her classmates to be aggressive and expose themselves to both the successes, and failures, that accompany adult life.

“In order to achieve the success we want, we must make ourselves vulnerable,” she told the packed gymnasium, which was overflowing with more friends and families who could not fit inside.

The night featured several musical performances, with the senior chorus performing “Forever Young” and the Leavitt band playing “The Olympic Spirit.”

Boys and girls were separated during the ceremony, with the ladies wearing white gowns and sitting on the right side of the gym while their male counterparts wore dark green and sat across the aisle.

In his speech, valedictorian Couturier also stressed the importance of setting goals and aiming high.

“The goals are the little steps which allow us to achieve our dreams,” he said. “We should never stop making goals.”

He also made a point of thanking the teachers at the school for being relentless in their demands for excellence and in pushing the students to do their best.

“They have been the ones to guide us as each of us pursued our own flight,” he said.

Meagan Gilbert warned classmates of the dangers of the real world.

“As we leave here tonight as high school graduates we will see how big and scary the world can be,” she said. “High school is a huge roller coaster with its ups and downs.”

Each speaker stuck with the theme of Disney movies, relating their speech to a different film and drawing from those lessons learned.

“All the skills we need to succeed, we already have,” said Couturier. “Just know we are ready for what’s to come. Just like Peter Pan, we can fly.”

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