RUMFORD — Ninety seniors at Mountain Valley High School were presented diplomas Thursday evening, marching into Puiia Gymnasium to “Pomp and Circumstance” played by the school band.

Confetti rains down on Mountain Valley High School graduates at ceremonies Thursday night in the Rumford school gym. Ninety seniors received their diplomas. Rumford Falls Times photo by Bruce Farrin

Valedictorian Dillon McPherson told graduates, “Elevate the lessons that you have learned in the past four years and the keys needed to be successful for the lives ahead of us.” The class transitions into a world “where our challenges are no longer given to us by teachers, coaches or advisors; we must learn to overcome our own challenges, our own obstacles.”

Quoting Albert Einstein, McPherson said, “A ship is always safe at shore. That’s not what it’s built for.”

“There are thousands of things we are responsible for at any given moment, and hundreds of them are sitting all around you today,” he said. He also noted that responsibility does not end with them but exists as a common factor that connects everyone, “because we should always stay responsible for each other and never take advantage of your community.

“Treat each other as equals,” he said. “Don’t let man made superiority dictate how you treat others, and get to know them before you begin to place judgment.”

After Superintendent Deborah Alden proclaimed them graduates, Class President Bryce Cormier performed his final duty by instructing classmates to turn their tassels. Afterward, they threw their caps into the air and broke into the class song, “Best Day of My Life,” by American Authors.

Following the recessional, graduates crowded into the cafeteria to share hugs with family and classmates.

The majority of the senior class then boarded buses to take their Project Graduation party at Cranmore Mountain Resort in North Conway, New Hampshire.

bfarrin@sunmediagroup.net

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