Emphasis on the positive for Messalonskee graduates

By Bill Van Tassel

OAKLAND — Messalonskee High School sent 155 graduating seniors on their way at commencement ceremonies held June 9 at the Augusta Civic Center.
Parents, grandparents, friends/classmates, and relatives attended the Thursday evening ceremony as graduates received their diplomas while pondering futures in the military, college, trade school and the workplace. Students at the Regional School Unit 18 high school are from Belgrade, China, Oakland, Sidney and Rome.

Seated on in chairs in front of the stage at the Civic Center in their red and blue gowns after they marched in to “Pomp and Circumstance,” they were greeted with applause and flashing phone cameras. All stood while the Messalonskee Concert Band played the national anthem.
Principal Paula Callan, addressing the graduates, didn’t present a challenge, but rather gave graduates some tips for dealing with those challenges. Specific advice was to “take smart risks,” “learn from mistakes,” “focus on the good,” and “reach out for help.” Callan got some chuckles with the advice “be on time.” She portioned these sensible suggestions within an encouraging theme of encouraging the graduates to believe that they will ultimately achieve success in a time frame that will suit their efforts.
Positivity was the theme that ran through each segment of the ceremony, including the speeches by Valedictorian Caden Cote and Salutatorian Chantelle Flores. Cote said it took him some time to come up with a theme that satisfied him. After thinking over his four years, “I kept going back to the idea of gratitude.” He looked over at his parents sitting in the front row and thanked them. He really thanked everyone, the teachers, coaches, maintenance staff and his peers, sharing how all those groups came together during the pandemic challenges.
“The end of high school is really a new beginning,” Flores said. She encouraged her classmates to find joy in their new experiences and challenges, and to reflect on how they got through the pandemic challenge with the help of their school. She closed out her speech by encouraging them to “follow the dreams and passions that you have.”