156th commencement. The wind made it difficult keeping hair, tassels and stoles in place. Although the sky was threatening. the clouds provided protection from the sun. Image: John Casper
Life’s paths still to be shaped for 209 grads
WINONA, Minn. — Even had it rained, the moment could not have dampened the spirit for 209 Winona High School students at their outdoor graduation ceremony at Paul Giel Field. It didn’t rain. Some perhaps will remember three backflips on the podium. Perhaps remembered too will be thoughts and wisdom from speakers:
Nathan Warneke
In his first graduation since becoming principal: “I don’t just see 209 graduates. I see 209 stories that are still being written. I see future teachers, nurses, mechanics, entrepreneurs, parents, community leaders and people who will make a difference in ways they can’t even yet imagine.”
Salome Tolvaisas
Herself graduating, in observations she called “The Art of Becoming”: “We will look back and remember how we wished away the time and how we couldn’t wait to leave. But we will spend a lifetime searching for the same passion, intensity and spontaneity of being young.”
Rodney Knutson
Also graduating, he shared personal struggles with worrying about what others thought about him and then encouraged treating others with respect and celebrate the positive aspects of their peers: “If we start celebrating the positive traits in people, our relationships with others will blossom. So too will our relationships with ourselves. When focusing on the positives, we grow as individuals.”
Kiley Pollock
Also graduating, she urged fellow graduates to live life like a lobster. Recalling a lesson from teacher Maeve Peterson, who taught that a lot can be learned from a lobster, which continues to grow despite a rigid exoskeleton that never changes: “Everyone will experience a different. But grow from these hardships rather than dwell on them.”