JAY — “Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, but today is a gift. Unwrap it and enjoy it for all it is worth,” Spruce Mountain High School North Campus salutatorian Brianna Beaupre said to the Class of 2013.

Commencement ceremonies took place Sunday for the school’s 51 graduating seniors. Principal Thomas Plourde, a 1994 Jay High School graduate, said that he left the community for new opportunities but was honored to be back as the North Campus principal.

He reminded the class that strong leadership, perseverance and dedication have helped mold them into the people they are today. Plourde also reminded them that they were welcome to come back.

“You are always welcome where everybody knows your name,” he said, quoting from the television show “Cheers”.

Melissa Allen has taught art at Jay High School and the past two years at the North Campus for a combined total of 37 years, and although she is retiring, Allen sees it as a new beginning.

“Some call it retirement, but I call it graduation,” she said in her address to the class. “Because of what I’ve learned, I can apply it for the rest of my life.”

Next year, all of the Spruce Mountain High School students will be attending the North Campus in Jay, which was Jay High School until the merger of the Jay and Livermore Falls school systems in 2011. In her remarks, Senior Class President Hayley Fortier noted the seniors have successfully made the transition from Jay High School Tigers to Spruce Mountain High School Phoenix.

“We’ve learned how to stick together,” she said. “The Class of 2013 has learned to adapt to change at lightning speed.”

Valedictorian Melanie Robitaille, in her speech, thanked her parents for her support. She also urged the class to remember the life lessons they learned in high school.

The Spruce Mountain High School band performed several musical selections, and senior John Blais played “Senior Class Lullaby” on acoustic guitar. A total of 86 scholarships totaling $217,975 were presented.