001[Music] um oh [Music] so [Music] thank you so much here we go [Music] my [Music] my [Music] please keep on looking at me even if you're sick of me okay here we go oh [Music] my [Music] my [Music] my so [Music] so [Music] so [Music] you [Music] welcome ladies and gentlemen to the class of 2021's commencement ceremonies thank you for your attendance this evening as we celebrate our seniors to start this evening's program we would ask that you please stand as we honor america as our concours singers sing the national anthem oh say can you see by the dawns of the light was so proudly we hailed at the twilight's last gleaming who's brought stripes and bright stars [Music] streaming and the rockets [Music] that our flag was still there oh say does that star
002spangled and the home of the [Music] [Applause] brave to begin today's program we would like to introduce our selected senior speaker who was chosen to be to present to our graduating class today at today's commencement immediately following this speech our selected senior speakers ms beck spotaro and mr joel cray will perform a musical selection for us today but first please welcome our senior speaker adriana smith to the podium good evening ladies and gentlemen and class of 2021. to say we made it would be an understatement 2020 and 2021 challenged us with adversity but we powered through it and for many of us graduation seemed to be a distant dream that wasn't even possible however i believe that we all share a unique characteristic that has brought us here today an unrelenting essence of strength determination
003and grit can be found within all of us and rather than envisioning our future i'd like to take a moment to reflect on the past and to focus on an obstacle that we have all overcome in high school we often feel that it's important to discover ourselves to find out who we truly are and what we really want and in doing so we sometimes lose our friends significant others and even ourselves and although that we know many of these events won't matter much in the future in high school it can feel like the problems that we face are as if the world is ending and it's only been the second period of the day while we know that many of these moments won't matter much in a year or five years or even 10 years
004from now it's important that we realize that these are the events and experiences that shape who we are and who we become in the words of oscar wilde education is an admirable thing but it is well to remember from time to time that nothing worth knowing can be taught life grants us these amazing opportunities and experiences that we get to learn from we make mistakes and we learn from them we go through painful times and we learn from them and everything that we've learned goes far beyond what the classroom could have ever taught us luckily i know this class is strong enough to withstand the challenges that will be thrown their way and with each challenge they will become more equipped to prevail through the next even when it feels like the walls are caving
005in please remember that these events are what motivate your character to grow adapt and thrive there will always be a silver lining in the darkness or a lesson to be learned through the pain because when we experience our lowest points we are open to the greatest changes as i close i'd like to remind everyone of the words of drew barrymore life is very interesting and in the end some of our greatest pains become our greatest strengths [Music] slow down you crazy child you're so ambitious for a juvenile but then if you're so smart tell me why are you still so where's the afraid what's the hurry about you better cool it up before you burn it out you've got so much to do and only so many hours but you know that when the truth
006is [Music] you can't be everything you want to be before your time although it's so romantic on the borderline tonight tonight too bad but it's the life you lead you're so ahead of yourself that you forgot what you need though you can see when you're wrong you know you can't always see when you're right you're right you've got your passion you've got your pride but don't you know that only fools are satisfied dream up but don't imagine they'll all come true [Music] slow down you crazy child and take the phone off the hook and disappear [Music] the whole life waits for [Music] waits for you [Music] [Applause] it is now my privilege to recognize the valedictorian and salutatorian to deserving members of our senior class these awards are the highest academic achievement a senior can
007earn during their high school career we will begin by recognizing our salutatorian who will come forward to accept this award please join me in congratulating the salutatorian of the class of 2021 miss caitlin stauffer [Music] [Applause] we will now present concord high school's highest academic honor for the class of 2021. we do have a tie for this honor this year so both students will deliver the valedictorian address we now ask that the co-valedictorians come forward to accept this award please join me as we recognize the class of 2021's co-valedictorians miss emma gingrich and miss justina riffle i would like to begin this speech like almost any other commencement speech with wow we made it we're here unlike in other commencement speeches however our class has faced some unique challenges that deserve to be addressed i
008took you back to fourth grade when the district decided to cancel the annual fourth grade trip to indy the year we were supposed to go clearly i'm not still bitter about that we had a little respite and then the infamous landfill fire of eighth grade we got smoked out of the junior high and sent home early how often does that happen then freshman year in the spring of 2018 the great floods hit we thankfully weren't as flooded as some other area schools but the yellow creek field and lower track were basically swimming pools if you thought we would get off easy sophomore year think again the polar vortex in winter of 2019 left us stuck at home for several days all of this led up to our junior year however in which the summer started
009with a huge construction-related flood in the music department then some seventh graders hacked the internet which got us sent home and then the obvious mid-march pandemic shutdown unless you've been living off the grid and only come into town once a year to buy oats you know how insane these last 15 months have been we missed out on junior year spring season for sports which is an important time for scouting we missed out on music performances and prom and awards night ceremonies and spring break vacations and human interactions we had no end date in sight and we were left in limbo when school started again there were still so many unknowns the hybrid schedule left the high school feeling a bit like a ghost town and i know so many of us yearned for the school
010year to just be over the senioritis covid school mixture did not help yet we persisted and if we hadn't we would not be here today now i want to be sensitive to some of the other struggles people in our class have faced over the years most of what i've mentioned seems pretty trivial looking back on it some of you have faced real losses throughout your school career like the death of a classmate or family member or struggles with illness and so much more these are not insignificant and we need to acknowledge this added pain a class has been through so much and yet through it all we have still seen so many successes even just managing to get up and exert some effort in class is a success one of my favorite teachers would say
011that being in school is a choice and i thank you all today for choosing that i think it's fair to say that we are truly made stronger throughout these hardships and i can say with confidence that this class will bring tenacity flexibility and perseverance to anything we choose to do nothing in life will seem too crazier out of the realm of possibilities now i know it's cliche to say in this type of speech but i'm proud of you i'm proud of us i really am we have been given so many opportunities to just check out throw in the towel but we didn't and now we're here thank you all we will be forever bonded in the shared wacky trip of a high school experience i would like to begin today by thanking everyone in attendance
012from friends and family in the audience to teachers and staff making this possible you have all influenced us in ways you couldn't imagine without you we wouldn't be where we are today thank you all after a hefty amount of google searching and stressing on how to give the perfect speech i realized that maybe the most memorable speech would be one that was so horrible it was good so after reading through many do's and don'ts on how to give a successful valedictorian speech i've decided to ignore all of their advice and actually do the complete opposite so follow along the webster dictionary defines commencement as an actor instance of convincing beginning so i might feel as if there's an end to a race and reality is just beginning and it's crucial that we push ourselves more
013than ever i have worked so hard for this and i cannot wait to succeed now it while it might seem like it's time to relax it is time to push ourselves more than ever whether we're heading off to college joining the workforce or military or so on speaking of relaxing i cannot wait to go to the beach this summer think about it we just got out of this high school and you're really gonna this negative energy carry on sorry guys that wasn't good don't read word for word don't make it about yourself don't read too fast don't get distracted don't be negative don't apologize these were all things i was told to do not to do yet i did them anyways so now you're probably what the wondering what the point was of potentially giving
014the worst speech concord has ever heard well here's your answer as i was originally writing this speech i was so set on following each individual rule and outline that i lost sight of how i wanted to give this speech and almost gave an unoriginal successful speech that was given a million times before now sometimes in life we just feel like this we have this need to follow expectations of what success is and dismiss our own wants to please others expectations i do not want to see anyone here today live life pleasing others and forget what success means to you because success is not defined by a college degree or wealth just like how the success of this speech is not defined by the following the do's and don'ts what success is defined by is the
015fulfillment and happiness you receive so live your life how you want to because if you find something that gives you purpose and you persevere you will find the success that most don't because as albert schweitzer once said success is not the key to happiness happiness is the key to success thank you all each year students have the privilege to select a teacher who will address the graduating class at their commencement ceremony this year our seniors have chosen mrs sheila uretnik for this honor it is my pleasure to congratulate and introduce you ms sheila eurednik [Music] good evening thank you dr kendall i'd like to extend my gratitude to superintendent dan funston the school board administrators colleagues parents grandparents and most importantly the graduates i am so honored to be with you you have changed me
016forever to the class of 2021 you are amazing what an incredible four-year journey you've been on while high school can be challenging you have faced unprecedented circumstances your presence here is proof of your resilience which is essential in overcoming obstacles and life is going to continue to throw the unexpected your way i challenge you to add love alongside your resilience an increased measure of love in our life propels us forward increases compassion and fuels personal growth let love lead you in three areas of your life first when deciding a profession choose what you love to do whether you love to dance repair cars repair hearts write solve mathematical equations or cook do what you love and you won't have to deal with that feeling of dread the night before you go to work but what
017if you don't know what you love or what you want to do and every time someone asks you so what are you going to do after high school and your stomach starts to turn just breathe it's okay go find what will create a passion in you and then your job won't feel like work because it becomes a fluid enjoyable part of your life second apply love to your interactions with other people simply recognize that each person you come into contact with has their own story love them where they are in their life that doesn't mean you have to like everybody or agree with everyone but realize that love fosters kindness forgiveness does not judge love increases compassion our interactions with other people no matter how brief will have a positive or a negative impact think
018of what happens when two stones are thrown into water in close proximity to one another the ripples created by each stone eventually overlap and they affect one another likewise we have an impact on everyone we come into contact with let love lead you be kind be compassionate be forgiving finally learn to love yourself that's the hardest one if we tear ourselves down how can we lift other people up if we can't recognize our own worth in the world how are we going to move forward if we can't forgive ourselves and learn from our mistakes how are we going to grow once you learn to love yourself healing happens loving yourself is like a prequel without it finding your passion in life and loving others is going to be so difficult let love lead you and
019apply that love to every area of your life i am so so proud of you and i love you congratulations class of 2021. thank you mrs your redneck my name is dan funson superintendent concord community schools class of 2021 on behalf of our staff and the entire concord community i wish you congratulations and good luck on the road ahead before you leave our campus today i'd encourage you to take a moment today to look around at all those who love and support you we're also very proud of what you've accomplished so far and excited to celebrate your future achievements families thank you for sharing your students with us and for your support of concord schools tonight i have the privilege this evening to introduce our school board seated at the far left of the stage
020is mr jared sponseller next to him is mr tim yoder next to mr yoder is mrs kelly barr next mrs jennifer davis speaking to you this evening is mrs kami wait president of the school board who has prepared a message to share with all of you thank you mr funston and wow it's really great to see all of your faces this evening as i thought about what to say to you tonight it was a balance of wanting to acknowledge the last 16 months and all that came with it and also not wanting to because well it's been 16 months of it and that has been full of every emotion known to us we've probably even combined a few and made up our own emotions put those emotions the last 16 months with together with graduating
021and all that that brings and well that just feels overwhelming so i thought of a few quotes and phrases that came to mind one is from nelson mandela who said that courage was not the absence of fear but the triumph over it a brave man is not he who does not feel afraid but he who conquers that fear friedrich nietzsche gave us what does not kill you makes you stronger this one i said a lot to myself when i was your age my senior year was turned upside down and like many if not all of you i had no choice but to roll with it and keep moving forward if these 16 months have taught you anything please let it be that life happens and it's not always pretty sometimes it's out of our control
022we do however always have control over how we react to our world it's okay to feel afraid but don't let that fear control or stop you and make sure that you look for a way to be better and stronger on the other side of whatever life has given you in that moment another phrase that comes to mind is don't let your past define you these 16 months have happened to the world they don't feel like it now but they are a blip on the radar of your life they do not define you moving forward basically i want to empower you to keep tapping into that grit dedication and passion that has gotten you this far know that if you keep focusing on those things the things you do have control over not even fear can
023stop you we are all very proud of you and what you've accomplished through all of your years here at concord and on behalf of concord school board of trustees i congratulate you and wish you all the very best this evening the school board members will present diplomas to the class of and student names will be read by assistant principals mrs amanda whitaker and mr travis swanson we would like to remind everyone that graduation is a time of ceremony and recognition of significant achievement signifying both an end and a beginning it is the culmination of 13 years of hard work as each graduate's name is read applauding is appropriate as it is our hope that each and every individual's name is heard by their family and friends therefore we ask that everyone refrain from making loud
024and disruptive noises and lastly to the class of 2021 so much has been said about the challenges you have faced over the last year don't get me wrong we know it was difficult but what hasn't been emphasized enough are all the mountains that you have climbed since you were merely five or six years old seriously reflect on how far you have come since sitting crisscross applesauce on your favorite carpet square in kindergarten while your determination to finish your high school career in an ever-changing world is admirable it is your character that will be remembered through all the ups and downs it has been your kindness humility and graciousness that has set your class apart kindness humility and graciousness remember those words because in all that your future holds your actions will always be gladder than
025your words enjoy the next chapter in your lives and rest assured that you are ready to take on the world so before we present your diplomas to you we would like to recognize our top 10 seniors we do have a tie this year so we have 12 seniors we would like to stand to be recognized as being in the top 10. well those seniors please stand [Applause] we also have students who have enlisted in the military and who will be serving our country in the coming years will those seniors please stand to be [Applause] recognized and lastly we'd also like to thank those seniors who put together tonight's slideshow and with that said at this time i dr lisa kendall as principal of concord high school certified to the board of education of concord community
026schools and superintendent mr dan funston that each of these students have met the graduation requirements set forth by concord community school board in the indiana department of education and are now eligible for receipt of their diplomas we will begin tonight by honoring two members of the class of 2021 who passed away during their time at concord high school both families will be presented with an honorary diploma the first honorary diploma will be presented to the family of lexus marvin at a later date the next honorary diploma presented tonight will be to the family of christian heyer his cousin marissa will accept his diploma on his behalf we will now pause for a moment of silence in honor of these two members of the class of 2021 and onto the remaining graduates justina j riffle [Applause]
027katharina irene crabill william e nicholson [Applause] rebecca ann klein caitlin abigail creek isabella simone freeland conrad isabella marie ivanelio abigail e lake stephen m simons vanessa solis jeffrey alejandro amador spradling jordan m aldridge jasmine marie howard riley elizabeth brennaman tayden charles kane vanessa renee kreitney mckenna delaine dufrese [Music] anthony j ernest amber marie fox jindarian jonathan greer [Applause] beck a spataro joel b cray monica baylen alvarez madison aaron loke grayson d mast bailey m morrison haley r robinson aiden m ross eric riley schwartz tristan michael shank jackies devonte shepherd brendan thomas stockman kylie renee wilson kat e williams morgan ashley workman cole d hershberger logan isaac kidder savannah catherine lane aaron william zoo griffin williams sword out [Music] kendall melinda sword out [Music] enrique francisco acosta janae starr acosta jimmy adame jacob brian streeter lucas
028a adams hernandez christopher jesus aguilar lorenzo antonio aguilar galindo jessica albino kayla sophia alley amaya diaz michaela a anderson mariano angeles valedis madison ann arba even arika perez andrea and avila jennifer e barkena romero alexander veronvera michaela r bartlett parker m bowman samantha barr haley elizabeth arms guillermo bernal luna nya megan oakland christina taylor bull karina nicole bolero nitzi chavez payton m fish [Applause] olivia michelle frito delilah gomez braden michael goss brendan johnson caitlyn nicole kiefer ariana vanessa martinez austin jacob moss gabrielle leo calvo payden anthony rohr wyatt c stringer dalton j sweinhart gracie paige tucker lorenda ann eulek divine joy booth megan dean booth [Music] michaela alexis borsch caden matthew bohr carson nicholas boyd isabel caitlin brandley cameron m boitis brandon cabrera carmen alexandria calderon jasmine rayne caldwell fernanda calvillo logan parker camarillo esmeralda
029campos tessie arlette campos vladimir cromono molina paulette castillo chloe jude cataldo jane marie centeno erica paola valencia autumn rain charles akira ray clark alexandria jadan conant ashley anay contreras ariana liasia cook [Music] bryce steven cook [Applause] [Music] sarah a cook riley l cooper raquel yasmin cortez logan a corn cassandra abigail cramer cody a crawford sydney noel cole diana s cunningham deasia latrice curtis dustin k darby fabrizio andre davila natalie crystal davila melissa delgado vasquez mahali b denny hope olivia demos [Music] august c hassler [Music] rachel isabella ducharme margaret elizabeth doll langston narachay elias kane michael elliott carson eugene elanic josue d escalante [Music] mia abigail gay samira constanza ferrando [Music] evelyn e gaetan [Music] mi lady e garcia jacob esparza pedrosa rose g george jessica herron diaz [Music] angela gonzalez [Music] danilo gonzalez mejia jesus
030gonzalez torres summer s graves beatrice guardinari katie a gutierrez liliana o gutierrez orozco evelyn arlette guzman jenna brie hall rose hardesty william r harris [Music] corbin l hartpins anthony j harvey brooke drake m hathaway aaron james dolph emma ruth gingrich caitlin diane stauffer jessica sotelo allison nicole veli jayden marina rigsecker john riley mcecron brian reyes gavin j smith [Music] evelyn rose tynerdt [Music] kira paige wilson angel vin truong adriana marie smith isabelle grace brunner madison ray copsy kendall and crouch [Music] carly mckenna lance sydney marie poindexter marisa nicole pro brook i watson cassandra aaron lynn hedrick paulina herrera ethan w johnson [Music] [Applause] carson m hobday daniel friedman darion dwayne hunter barnes nyla anissa ethel lee jackson janelle e james colin nicole jester andrew t bondurant [Applause] stephanie claudio divine johnson madison marie jones [Applause]
031preston allen canopel patrick brogan kelly c aaron o kennedy [Applause] lindsey lee kish ryan a kittch lauren j khan [Applause] john maher kalarian kreider seth r lamb kagan bennett layman [Music] haley m lise gabriella yamas [Music] arlette luvano giselle luna walter a luna navaretti colin m mccauley ayanna macon salvador e mares liam alexander martin abigail marie martinez abigail elizabeth martinez alicia martinez eileen martinez francisca diana martinez jorge juan martinez karina y martinez alana nicole mccain [Applause] odette medina sergio medrano hernandez brianna i mendoza b mendoza paola di mendoza neves daniela marisol menendez rodriguez colin dale miller ian michael miller mason tyler moore natalie grace moore tyron jerome moore [Music] morris griffin reed moss ethan a moya aaron m mario [Applause] carlos a negretti zoe k kneader brayden john newbern destiny e novak lilly fuschen nowlan
032john a ocampo jasolin susanna ochoa zalaya alison elizabeth olmsted eric v olvera arturo orozco catherine ruby ortega perla i ortiz ordonias yvonne palacios jason a perez miranda alexander f perez bermudez sydney grace perez miller nathan e peterson hannah may imis bailey r phillips dakota lane choir [Applause] [Music] adrian lee rockowski montoya julese ramirez andrea j ramos dante t reed diarion l reeves and reuben requinis alexia m rivera emmanuel rizzo [Applause] ethan c robinson [Applause] madison page robinson ashanti alexis rogers [Music] brianna natalia romero kevin giovanni ruiz cruz [Music] susie m saylor samantha salas guzman destiny salvador abdil santiago cruz aaliyah j sheretti marissa elizabeth schmucker bryson drew schrock [Applause] jake ian sir javier j cerna ashton r seifert leslie naomi sierra faith and simpson [Applause] jaspreet singh isaiah r singleton [Applause] kaylina r slack ariana
033smith spencer a smith malachi a stalhansky tyler j stroup [Music] daniela j suarez milian terum taryn m tarman nicholas thane jarrett j tubes andrea torres edwin miguel tovar michaela e valdez andrea soliansky valdez medina jose a valenzuela jaime r valenzuela sonora [Music] payton lee vanshoyk gustavo angel vasquez [Applause] alexa villa gomez emily vite charles lewis walker keeley e whedon preston t wilkins calvin c williams [Applause] jackson david williams caleb joseph womack [Applause] minway yep rachel marie yoder devin c young sebastian zarco ruvacaba joanna zalia aguilar kimberly zendejas alexis chiquito just will the seniors please rise ladies and gentlemen as the student body president i now present the class of 2021 and declare them graduates [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] how i'm not much for somebody with some super human gifts some superhero some fairy
034tale bliss just something i can turn to somebody i can kiss i want something just like [Music] this [Music] oh i want something just like this [Music] something [Music] want something just like this [Music] something [Music] oh [Music] oh [Music] just like this [Music] hear a knock on the door [Music] make yourself at my home tell me where you've been [Music] sometimes [Music] welcome to [Music] welcome to my house [Music] close the blinds let's pretend that the time has changed [Music] sometimes you gotta stay