BETHEL — “You are given one life. Give justice to it,” valedictorian and summa cum laude student Adam Mahar told the Telstar High School graduating class at Friday night’s commencement exercises.

Sixty-five students received their diplomas from Principal Daniel Hart during the indoor ceremony. Forty-four of them received a total of $1.3 million in scholarships from 96 donors, Hart said.

Twenty students will attend one or two-year colleges; 31 students will go on to four-year colleges; six students will enter the work force and four will enter military service. Four students remain undecided about their future plans, he said.

“This emphasizes the amount of achievement these seniors have worked for in their four years at Telstar High School,” Hart told hundreds of family and friends.

The students marched into the gymnasium shortly before 7 p.m. to the formal processional “Pomp and Circumstance.”

They invited guest speaker Antonio Solis, a fitness specialist who works for the state’s wellness program. His speech, which centered on attitudes for the future, was the result of a meeting between Solis and several of the Telstar students.

“Be the person you want to be, every moment, every day,” and always “be mindful” in the choices in life, he told the class.

Third honors, cum laude student Britany Douglass told her classmates she has never been bullied in her 12 years of schooling.

“I wouldn’t be the person I am without you guys,” she said.

Salutatorian and magna cum laude student Emily Bellinger spoke about their future lives using the analogy of music.

“Make a truly beautiful sound,” she said. Be dedicated and passionate, she advised, as they face the successful lives waiting for them.

Mahar talked about “YOLO,” meaning you only live once.

“Much lies before us in the world,” he said, urging his classmates to use discretion and common sense in the choices they make.

“I urge you to improvise,” he said.

Seniors Joshua Head, Taylor Kelly and Mahar gave the class reflections from the three elementary schools, middle school and high school they attended, remembering such things as library sleepovers, fighting over library cushions, learning how to make PowerPoint presentations, Tic Tacs and much more.

The students sang a choral selection, “How Far We’ve Come” by Matchbox Twenty before listening to congratulatory remarks by chairman of the school board Sidney Pew.

Superintendent David Murphy certified the graduates just before Hart presented diplomas.

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