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06/16/2021 07:00 AMAfter a year unlike any other, Westbrook seniors finally got a little slice of normal on June 11 when they received their diplomas at an in-person graduation ceremony.
Last year, the Westbrook schools closed in March and, due to the uncertainty surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic, substantial alterations had to be made to graduation. The 2020 graduation was livestreamed with prerecorded video of the speeches and of each student receiving their diploma.
Thankfully, despite a tumultuous school year, once again due to pandemic-related restrictions, the Class of 2021 was able to hold an in-person graduation that was as close to normal as possible. On a cool but sun-filled evening, the 48 members of the senior class donned n their caps and gowns at Westbrook High School and headed outside to patiently sit through one last round of speeches before saying goodbye.
After Class President Luca Troop welcomed the attendees, Salutatorian Michael Cox reminded his classmates to embrace every step of their journey, no matter where it leads. During his speech, Cox recounted how physics teacher. Mr. Zebrowski taught him to build and appreciate a solid foundation before moving on to harder steps and urged the graduates to do the same in their life.
“With all this in mind, my one piece of advice for all my fellow graduates is to appreciate every step in life. Whatever you choose to pursue in life, whether it be the arts, education, law, business, engineering, medicine, etc., I encourage you to start at the basics,” said Cox. “It will come with its obstacles and hurdles. At times, you may feel like you are taking a step backwards, but if you believe in the process, the time and effort will flourish into success,” he added.
In his valedictory speech, Jesse McGannon touched on the strange situations the class had to endure due to the pandemic and how that uncertainty prepared the class for whatever life will throw at them. McGannon began his speech saying he had to scrap his idea of making a typical graduation speech full of anecdotes and metaphors because in his words “We are not a formulaic class. We are not an average class. Of course, I couldn’t follow a formula to make that speech work, because our class didn’t follow a formula throughout high school, and we’re not going to in the future.
“We lost the traditional senior year. But while we lost that familiar pattern of senior events, we came to live in the moment, to take nothing for granted, and to appreciate every positive aspect of the year that came our way. Our senior year may not have followed the formulaic path from start to finish, but we improvised, we adapted, and we made the most of every opportunity we got. That spirit helped us get through this year, and it’ll help us moving forward into the next stage of our lives,” McGannon said.
Finally, shortly after the final student crossed the stage and received his diploma it was time for the moment that the students had worked so hard over so many years for: Principal Tara Winch proclaimed the graduates the official Class of 2021 and the air was filled with flying caps and cheers.