As dark clouds threatened rain outside, family and friends of the 465 members of the McCaskey High School Class of 2009 filled the school auditorium Tuesday night to wish the students goodbye and good luck.
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For the newest Red Tornado alumni, it was a rousing sendoff.
"We heard reports of tornado warnings — of course there were, we've got 465 of them on stage tonight," McCaskey East Principal Jay Butterfield told the enthusiastic audience of supporters.
The ceremony began with nearly 20 minutes of "Pomp and Circumstance" as school staff and the graduating class filed in. It continued with statements of school pride, musings on the good times gone by and the traditional guidance on seeing graduation as a new beginning.
"Today we reach the finish line only to prepare ourselves for another race," student speaker Evita Colon said.
Colon's heartfelt speech recounted a rebellious stage that led to a school suspension, then a second chance she said she was determined not to waste.
"The love and support I received here at J.P. McCaskey campus is the kind that I would not have ever gotten anywhere else," said Colon, who plans to study nursing at Shippensburg University in the fall.
Other student speakers boasted about the strength of McCaskey's student body, asked the audience to rethink notions of success and drew inspiration from the 2008 election of President Barack Obama.
"I believe success does not depend upon results, but is a process that involves positive interaction between people," David Bishop said.
Kristin Callaway, president of the senior class, said McCaskey's diversity makes it strong.
"With the sea of red and black behind me, we not only wear our school colors, we embrace them and we embody that McCaskey pride that has been celebrated for over 70 years," she said.
Janna Richards asked the audience to look ahead while thinking back on all the changes since 1991, when most members of the Class of 2009 were born.
"The past is the past but the future is in our hands," Richards said.
School board president Patrick Snyder told the graduating class that it is OK to be a little afraid about the future, but that their fears don't have to limit them.
Superintendent Pedro Rivera, presiding over the 75th school commencement and his first as the district's leader, informed the graduates that they should no longer rely on being nagged to finish their work. Bosses and college professors are loathe to give repeated reminders, he warned.
Yet Rivera told the graduates that while there are a lot of challenges ahead, they are off to a good start.
"No matter what your background is, with a high school diploma in hand, you're on the path for a successful future," he said.
Student honors were also announced during commencement.
Bishop received the Clarence M. Ebersole Award, the school's highest social studies honor, and Danee Simms was given the Dr. Harvey A. Smith Award, which is sponsored by the Rotary Club.
Colin Vanden received the John Piersol McCaskey Award, which honors a male English student, and Katherine Herzog got the the Kathryn M. Buckwalter Award, the comparable award for a female student.
Karla Verkouw won the school's Hall of Honor Award, McCaskey's highest overall student award.
Staff writer Chad Umble can be reached at cumble@LNPnews.com or 481-6031.
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