001spectators attending tonight's event on danbury high school campus are asked to respect the following recommended guidelines it is recommended that all spectators wear a mask and socially distance at all times all spectators must respect the danbury school district health and safety guidelines to help keep us all in attendance safe thank you for your cooperation danbury high school prides itself on having the best graduation ceremony in the state of connecticut because of the number of students we celebrate and with which we honor their accomplishments to continue with these traditions please refrain from using noisemakers air horns or inflatables at any time during the ceremony as it ensures that all students are afforded their moment to shine for which they've worked so hard thank you in advance for your cooperation um [Music] please welcome today high school
002and air force [Music] please [Music] and now it's ready joseph superintendent of schools ladies and gentlemen the faculty staff of new york high school do [Music] so foreign uh ladies and gentlemen high school graduate class of 2021. um all right and oh hey you i'm baby oh is uh [Music] um oh [Music] hey guys [Music] and i would like to introduce my fellow senior class officers treasurer gabriel corten vice president qazi begum and our senior class president nicolas satina would the senior members of the madrigals please join their group one member at this time i would ask everyone to please turn off their cell phones at this time we will salute the flag gentlemen please remove your caps please stand please stand please stand i pledge allegiance to the flag of the united states of
003america and to the republic for which it stands one nation under god indivisible with liberty and justice for all please remain standing for the singing of the star spangled banner is hello please be seated i would like to introduce our guests on the stage and ask that they stand to be recognized mayor cavo [Applause] board chair cooper present and past members of the board of education [Applause] superintendent pasquerella [Applause] assistant superintendent wallston [Applause] and the rest of the members of our cabinet as well as our special guest state senator julie kushner i would like now to introduce the mayor of the city of danbury mayor cabo good evening dr pasquerella principal donovan board members honored guest state senator julie kushner i want to welcome everyone here to this graduation ceremony and i wish to extend
004my heartfelt congratulations to each of our graduates here today in your lifetime in my lifetime there has never been a year quite like this one and although many years have passed since my high school graduation my memories of that day are perfect and the significance of graduating high school is still undiminished this pandemic and its effects will be remembered throughout world history as students you were forced to take on new challenges with distance learning and while i imagine you are all much more technology savvy than i am i know that leaving your classroom and learning from home on an ipad or a computer was still quite the challenge not being able to see your friends your teammates your teachers even more challenging but through it all you remained resilient you fought through the obstacles adapted
005to the changes and are now much stronger for it you are graduating today no other generation will understand what the class of 2021 and your peers just ahead of you in the class of 2020 have endured to get through to this point this is a day of great significance it celebrates the successes of one stage of education and you have come a long way you've begun as small children eager to learn that the basics he's eager to grow up you have accomplished that and so much more your education here at danbury high school has given you an excellent beginning and a platform for a lifelong process of learning some of you will go into the military some of you will go to work and some of you will go on to college others will take
006some time to explore options travel or perhaps take a gap year to consider your prospects whatever you do look at the world through the lens of your understanding history and your heart read listen more than speak hear the world around you it will be your best teacher throughout life you will be asked to master a skill and grow as situations change most of you will experience retraining as you may make career changes several times before you retire your need to learn will never end thankfully the tools you need to proceed down this road have been have been provided for you here at danbury high school this too should be a time of enjoyment you have grown into young adults you've worked hard to reach this point today you studied you crammed you worried and most
007certainly a time struggled but the work you have invested in has paid off you are you are succeeding in achieving this milestone it is time for a celebration time to have some fun you certainly deserve it and i wish you a wonderful summer however i would lack responsibility in my part if i didn't caution you that while enjoying yourselves and your celebrations please use good judgment and at all times be safe out there there's so much more to life that you must yet experience we do not stand alone in life we share all we do in some fashion without many others the world we live in today is not the same as that of your parents and your grandparents i ask that you become involved for those who now participate i ask you to increase
008your activity we need people who care people who will volunteer their time energy and skills to help make our society grow to to help those most in need to pick up where government leaves off to give back to your community for all that was given to you to become good kind caring and responsible citizens and last but not least we need to thank your parents guardians friends teachers administrators for the help support and encouragement that that was the bedrock the foundation so to speak that enabled each of you to achieve the level of success that we are here to celebrate with you today in closing i want to congratulate the class of 2021 on their graduation i wish them every fortune material materially and emotionally may your future be a peaceful one full of happiness
009and success may you retain your every goal may you be a credit to your family and your community and may guide watch over you as you proceed through every next step of your lives thank you very much now to speak is the longest serving board member with over 30 years of service board chairperson ms gladys cooper [Applause] good afternoon everyone it is indeed an honor and a pleasure to be here this afternoon at your graduation as a young man introduced me earlier this afternoon and i'm going to remind everyone and i continue to remind myself that i'm probably the oldest person sitting up here on this platform but it's indeed an honor and honor that i have served all these years as a board of education member good afternoon honorable mayor calvo superintendent of school
010dr pascarel board of education members and all distinguished guests how can we not recognize the principal of this great high school mr dan donovan congratulations to the class of 2021 as you leave dhs remember all the memorable times that you have shared with your teachers and friends be sure to continue to keep your eyes on your goals that you have outlined it for yourself the stars are always shining bright when you wish upon a star your green will take you very far as you graduate and leave dhs for the next chapter of your lives remember to be safe respect yourself and help take care of others on behalf of the danbury board of education congratulations to the class of 2021 i would now like to introduce state senator kushner who will give a proclamation to
011our valedictorian caleb schlissel [Applause] good afternoon it's so great to see you all here i haven't been at a graduation since 2010 when my youngest daughter one of three children i had that graduated from danbury high school when she graduated much hotter day that day but i do want to say that it's really a bittersweet day for you all because i know why you're looking forward to what comes next in your life you're also i'm sure a little sad to be leaving this wonderful school i know that i so appreciate the teachers and the administrators that help my children get a great start on life and i always look back and think how it would have been different for them if it hadn't been for danbury high school and so i congratulate you all um
012before i get to our valedictorian i do want i have a little surprise for dr sal because we know we're going to be very sorry to see him go we wish him well but i do have a proclamation for you so i will just quickly read it and then you can receive it it says from all of the delegation from the danbury state senate and house of representatives dear dr sal your leadership vision and tireless efforts as superintendent of the danbury public schools and your 50 years of service and education 28 years as superintendent and 15 years of service in danbury you've brought progress and promise to our school system and to our students we thank you for your dedication and offer our best wishes as you embark on the next chapter of your life
013but now for the student that has been honored with the position of valedictorian for the class of 2021. caleb i know you're going to say a few words in a few minutes that will enlighten everyone and will show us exactly why you were chosen as valedictorian but i want to congratulate you and in recognition of having earned this distinction i want to say this honor illustrates your outstanding achievements hard work perseverance and academic excellence we applaud your determination and striving for and achieving such high goals congratulations on a job well done and great success in your future and i do want to let you know this is from the general assembly and it's an official citation and it is signed by the president of the senate martin m looney the speaker of the house matt
014ritter and the secretary of state denise merrill so congratulations [Applause] all right so as i was writing this speech i considered making a few jokes here and there just to lighten the mood um so i asked a few friends for feedback sent them my speech and quickly learned that i should probably stay away from a career in comedy or i can just make some new friends that's beside the point though my name is caleb and i know some of you definitely know me as the kid who wore bow ties in freshman year i'm really excited to have the opportunity to share my thoughts with you today but before i do i'd just like to thank mayor cavo board of education chairperson cooper past and present members of the board of ed superintendent pascarella assistant superintendent
015wallston mr donovan and all of the dhs faculty parents and guardians for their hard work especially this past year on behalf of the class of 2021 your dedication and continued support are greatly appreciated now to my friends and peers isn't it a bit ironic that we started our final year of high school worried about covid19 only to end it recovering from fresh cases of senioritis i don't know about you but i definitely started feeling the symptoms of dwindling motivation and accelerating fatigue way back in april i was so focused on being done with high school and i think i saw graduation as the last leg of an arduous marathon or the epic conclusion to some blockbuster film for some reason i thought that all my struggles would magically vanish and i'd be left with the
016happy ending that i've worked hard for but now that i'm finally here i can't help but realize how wrong that mindset is there's no finish line in sight for us today nor will credits roll as we leave with our diplomas instead our lives will continue to progress after graduation with our podium finishes and epic conclusions waiting for us in the distant future right now we're just catching our breath and rehydrating or getting up to stretch during a slow part of the movie and while we're a long way from the end it can't be denied that we've persevered through a lot whether it be ap exams college applications maintaining a healthy school and life balance every single one of us has overcome challenges during our time here at dhs and although it may sound a bit
017disheartening we're not done with stress or failure we might be temporarily free of 11 59 pm deadlines monotonous textbooks or even the overcrowded d3 hallways but there are still greater challenges that we now have the opportunity to take on so what comes next where do we go from here first of all i'd say we should celebrate let's take our attention away from the race and forget about how exhausted we might feel look away from the movie from it for a minute and just appreciate the company of the people that you're with we've all truly earned this moment so i think we deserve to congratulate ourselves and reflect on how far we've come as to what comes after that well that's up to you right now i'd like to i'd like you to think about a
018goal that you have for your lives after graduation today maybe it's something like succeeding in college or working a job that you really like it could be spending more time with your family or even starting one of your own regardless of what your objectives are accomplishing them won't be easy we'll need to take risks we'll fail and even after we pick ourselves back up we'll fail again it will be difficult but success without hard work isn't what defines us our ability to remain determined and learn from our failures gives us the power to control our futures it's evident that we all have the potential to do great things but if we give up at the faintest site of failure or settle for indifference we'll never learn the true satisfaction of accomplishment so members of the
019class of 2021 if you're not asleep already our plan is simple we must keep moving forward until we triumph over all of the obstacles in our path no matter the barriers we face we'll strive to overcome them we'll continue to embrace failure take risks and learn from our mistakes hatters i challenge you to give your hearts in everything that you do from this day forth keep chasing your finish lines and stick around for the credit sequences with enough patience hard work and determination we'll be able to break through that finish tape and watch as the credits roll thank you next i would like to introduce our food our first student speaker melody david [Applause] hi everyone i know you're hot and you want to get it over with and just get your diplomas but i
020just want you guys to listen to just this last ones my fellow graduates of 2021 this is it for once this is the one thing i do not want to rush in my life everyone knows what the type of person i am i do not plan but i will rush through all of my actions as if everything is a blur but this once i'd like to have five more minutes with all of you i'm melody darrett i'm happy to finally stand before all of you without the screen of my laptop separating us being able to see so many of my fellow classmates faces and staff in front of me only reminds me of the busy and crazy year of our freshman lives it seems as if it was only yesterday that we were standing in
021these bleachers during our first spirit week of high school meeting so many new friends and dressing up in all white with paint paint on our faces except here we stand four years later one by one dressed in gowns with graduation caps as freshmen we looked up to the seniors thinking they lived their life so freely as if they figured everything out obviously now we know that is probably the biggest lie we ever fed into of course other than believing we're gonna start coming in school or any earlier than february personally i believe the four years were going to be painfully long and hard which made me dread coming to school as early as seven in the morning yeah i can't help but feel my last two years of high school were taken away from me
022if only i woke up and got ready for school the first time my alarm clock rang if only i made the bus so i wouldn't miss 30 minutes of first period if only i forced myself into trying new clubs and sports when i had the opportunity if only i popped my own personal bubble and made new friends in every classroom and if only i believed that time was precious that maybe just maybe i would have had extra time to appreciate the high school experience with all of you corona made us realize what we took for granted more than anything before i continue the corny and emotional graduation speech i'd like to gain recognition and awareness of being a student during quarantine corona was an immense change on everyone but for some reason at a certain
023point it felt like the world was against me i may not be wearing as many tassels as i wished i would since freshman year i may not be graduating with the outstanding gpa that i've been beating myself up for for the past four years but i am here right standing at this podium here i stand thinking i would never make it we aren't perfect we aren't machines we are human beings we adjust and change alongside time we all did the best that we could and we are all standing here today i'm sure a lot of you can relate at this time period of time has been mentally draining i'm a student just like any of you always remember to be proud of yourselves i have multiple teachers to thank for reminding me that thank you
024for working outside of teaching to save our lives by merely encouraging us i've come to realize that high school isn't about just homework projects and exams which was what made me dread the four years to come but it is what we learn outside of textbooks we are all most saying of each other whether short or long term encounters with every passing year with new teachers and classmates we created unique memories that slowly shaped our personalities prior to adulthood we may have had a very rough past two years but at least i'm able to share this final moment with all of you as of today we leave with pride but especially with each other goodbye can be a simple farewell to everyone but as i speak goodbye seems to be a million words that cannot be
025expressed so simply we never thought our time would be so limited in fact i'm sure most of us thought time was slowing down in quarantine so before the goodbyes and thank yous i'd rather say congratulations congratulations to those who worked extra hard no matter how optional class felt online and especially congratulations to those who did enough when school became extremely draining after switching to distance learning i'm especially proud of you and of course congratulations to the class of 2021 enough about us i'd like to thank mr donovan members of board of education especially chair person cooper and superintendent pasquerella and of course mayor cavo thank you for giving us the opportunities and resources to be where we are today and who we will become tomorrow teachers and faculty thank you for teaching in such a
026difficult time as much as we just like turning on our cameras and forcing ourselves to talk in breakout rooms i recognize your constant drive to teach us because you believed in our abilities despite the drastic change of teaching i'd like to personally thank mrs tong miss hussler mrs lorenz and mrs granny and mrs passarelli for believing in me despite my doubts for myself you did more than teach me in fact you taught me the lessons of life i will always be grateful for that even when i'm states away parents and staff thank you for arranging the last few weeks with events that seemed as if our lives were almost back to normal and so i leave with one last message fellow graduates teachers faculty and families in the event corona no longer affects our daily
027living live as if you'll never know when another pandemic steals your time away remember time will not wait for you so pop that personal bubble and make new friends reach for new opportunities and waste no time remember as you step into college we are all most sick of each other you would be surprised how many little habits you inherit from people you've crossed paths with time is the most important thing that should not be stolen from you value it because you will never be able to replace it nor take it back even if it's five more minutes although we've been taught to stay six feet away from each other i hope my corny message has reached you we all may not have met every single one of each other the entire four years but we
028do all have one single memory altogether and that moment is right now and now goodbye class of 2021 goodbye danbury high school thank you for allowing me to talk with you this one last time even if it's just for five minutes thank [Applause] you [Music] oh [Music] close your eyes lay your head down now it's time to sleep may you find great adventures [Music] if you're scared i will calm your fears so you know i'm here monsters go [Music] all right forever [Music] from now on can sing this song there's a light in the heart your blessings every day everything will be okay not alone [Music] good night [Music] oh [Music] [Laughter] [Music] would the senior members of the madrigals return to their respective seats with the graduates now our second student selected speaker alina
029jacob [Applause] mayor cavo superintendent pasquerella members of the board of education mr donovan faculty parents friends and the members of the class of 2021 i have a question for all of you have any of you heard of the game minecraft or even played it raise your hand if you done so come on let's see some hands alright i see a couple all right how about back here all right we got a few all right now raise your hand if you ever read the end credits to the famous game i don't see a lot of okay i see one but i don't see that many well that's okay because i've taken the time to read the end credits and what i found was something not many get to discover a poem if the universe could speak
030to us i would quote minecraft yes a children's game in saying you have played the game well everything you need is within you you are stronger than you know minecraft is a sandbox game where you as the player are unexpectedly placed in a world with nothing but your intuition and creativity the moment you hit create new world you are in charge letting your dreams take control of a world you can only imagine experiencing from creating buildings that reach the sky's limit or fighting bad guys to complete the heroic lore the once foreign world becomes yours for many of us we return to this childhood game during quarantine though we were trapped within the bounds of our house walls this game allowed us to explore beyond what we could not physically touch even if you did
031not play this game during the height of quarantine you found ways to expand your home because you knew you deserve a chance to explore beyond the barriers created by this pandemic though most most of us only thought we were playing a game we as the class of 2021 were already proving we have the potential to create something very few can imagine coming to a reality though our high school journey was unexpected i always thought of high school as a game not specifically a video game but any game you might have played sports board games your occasional kahoot we all have been a part an event where our skills were put to the test some people entered the hallways of our high school unprepared getting overwhelmed with the opportunities this school has to offer or the
032large crowd of students just trying to get to class others come in with a fully thought out strategy ready to jump in and graduate with honors or have the honor to graduate in other words everyone comes in with their own way to play the game dreaming of the day they get to feel the victory of going across the finish line but like in any game you play there's always a point where a level feels so hard to complete that it feels impossible to keep going for us that arrived in march of 2020 in fact some may not describe it to be a hard level but an unexpected pause that forced us to step away from the life we love or some consider this time to be a game changer for new opportunities arrived as some
033navigated their whole lives online overall our stories change from your typical high school experience having no guide or easy hack to follow yet we still managed to pick up our mask and go above and beyond the challenges that laid before us normalcy became appreciated as we headed to classes online but we still made the best of it disappointment lingered everywhere but we still managed to make danbury high school a site of success we have shown this year that when we dream we are actually building a world for our reality and when we stand up we stand for the importance of individuals and even when we are in fear we are not afraid to speak for what we believe in if i had a moment to re re-watch the gameplay you will have chosen to work
034with i would only see the class of 2021 holding their integrity becoming advocates of a community and growing into young adults who have already proven that they can change the world the universe has spoken to us and we have chosen to play the game well though we are exiting a sandbox we have come to love we have a new game to play and a new story to unfold if you survived high school during a global pandemic multiple political dilemmas and the most challenging of all waking up to your google me class on time you can survive the next level whether you're attending university off the trade school or the workplace serving our country or more i know that the class of 2021 will able to hold the same strength and the same determination as they
035enter the next level of their life so to end it all off i would like to read to you the final parts of the poem i found and the game was over and the player woke up from the dream and the player began a new dream and the player dreamed again dreamed better and the player was the universe you are the player wake up wake up you have a new dream to play thank [Applause] you [Applause] principal donovan will now address the graduating class of 2021 on behalf of the faculty [Applause] before i start i'd like to make an announcement if we get a big round of applause for our girls track team today that just won the connecticut state open [Applause] it was funny you know we were prepping for coming out and doing
036all this stuff and nicotina asked me i said how are you going to do up there mr donovan you're going to be able to make it through and i said yeah i've been doing this for a long time i'll be able to do it this could be a tough one this could be a tough one but welcome welcome to danbury high school the largest high school in the state of connecticut i know many parents are excited to be here today but none more than two special people in my life see my mother and father are here to watch their grandson graduate like many parents here today they sat at my high school graduation and wondered if i was prepared for the world if i could make it in college and what the world has in
037store for me as a parent i figured out now the worry never ends but i think it changes a little i know my parents are sitting in the stands watching their son on the stage in front of all these people my mother's proudly thinking wow my son's in charge of all this and then there's my dad who's thinking wow who in their right mind put my son in charge of all of this growing up playing sports my mother would always whistle let me know she was in the stands where are you mom but just like many of you i learned a lot of things from my parents but for the first time i can say i learned one thing wrong see my parents hated us watching tv on saturday mornings and wasting the day watching
038cartoons remember that was before netflix hulo and prime when you actually had to get up early on saturday morning to watch your shows i know many parents out there know what i'm talking about kids not so much my parents would say you only live once but that is just not true in fact i think the opposite is kind of true you only die once but you do get to live each and every day every day is and can be a new adventure it's up to you to make the best of each day don't spend hours on tick tock or instagram unless you're a creator and feel free to you know cap cash at me some money or venmo or something like that feel free if you have learned anything from this past year class of
03921 it's you should take advantage of the time you have and live like you may not have that time again this past year and a half has been difficult for all and it should have taught you the value of time as a senior class you were stripped of many events which make high school years memorable homecoming dances sporting events crowds a whole school graduation you were left with google meets long days sitting in chairs or lying in your bed and learning to communicate while wearing a mask but you know something you all did it and learning to uh you but you all did it you lived each day you stood up when you needed to you buckled down when it was necessary but your journey is not over you need to take the same mentality
040and attack your next adventure whether it's college the military united states naval academy or the workforce make you're the best person you can be every day hundreds of principals get to stand up here like myself and say that their graduating class is the best class that school's ever had i'm guilty of saying that myself what i contend to is this class is the most special class by far some of you may not know this but i do have a son who will be graduating today and with that son the senior class comes his friends most principals can only say they watch their students grow from 9th through 12th grade i've had the pleasure of witnessing some of them grow from the time they work in kindergarten even some before that conor borrigas i have spent
041time watching or watching them now in various sporting events even spending hours at a west side recital watching that awesome percussion group hit that instrument like no other i have made friends with their parents who i gladly share this day with i have witnessed the changes from the young elementary students they were to the graduates they are today including one stage of a great afro by derrick rivers these are things most principals can't claim i claim it and i do so proudly i wouldn't have changed anything or any outcome for any other job in the world one of the graduation traditions i started five ago five years ago was the gift of a graduation carnation the carnation is a unique gift because it's not meant for you the carnation was on your seat is intended
042for somebody else who helped you through your time at dhs someone you made the connection with someone who supported you someone you feel deserves it be it a teacher a sibling a grandparent or a parent but i need you to take a moment sitting out there on this beautiful day it's a lot cooler right now than it was before and think about someone who has helped you and that is where the carnation goes as i was sitting in the garage with my lovely wife unwrapping 800 carnations i began to think about who i would give a carnation to i mentioned it to my wife that i need to give out bunches of them this year so what most people don't understand is that trying to run the largest high school in the state of connecticut
043from a computer through google meets and zoom meetings just stinks and i wrote another word in there but i wanted to keep this pg if it wasn't for a fantastic administrative team which supported all the ideas we had the shuts down the contact tracing it would have been an impossible task then there are the teachers can we please give a round of applause for our staff and teachers here today these teachers were thrust into a form of teaching that was new to all of us and they came out smiling on the other side i could have given it to our retiring teachers miss stence miss casey miss harris mr golick miss lieberman and finally miss cal dhs will be losing 135 years of teaching experience the staff will be losing leaders in the building and
044i'll be losing a group that has always put students first and for all of you i thank you for your time and dedication i could give it to our dhs pto who decided early on that the classes of 20 and 21 were not going to be shorted on anything they worked tirelessly to give their children the best senior experience they could have they also took on the responsibility of beautifying the campus and succeeded on both fronts to the dhs pto ladies as a parent of a graduating senior and the principal i thank you for all your hard work i could give a carnation to dr sal after 50 years in education 28 superintendent 15 years in the danbury district had decided to concentrate on his golf game and having seen him play i couldn't agree
045more it needs work there there are not enough hours for him to concentrate on his job and perfect his golf game but i would like to thank you dr sal for being a sounding board a listener and a mentor to who i could talk to more than just school but lastly i decided that you the class of 21 deserve my carnation you could have folded you could have complained about everything but all you did was what we asked and you were a hatter when things didn't work out you fixed it you could have shut down and forgotten about school but you rose to the occasion my carnation goes out to all of you you are an extraordinary group of young people you have made the best of a bad situation i am proud of you
046and remember once i had her you're always at her i love you all i would now like to introduce our senior class president nicholas attina hello everyone i am nicholas satina your class president i want to say good afternoon to my fellow members of danbury high school graduating class of friends and family the reputable mr donovan the ec members of the board of education boe chairperson cooper the honorable superintendent uh mr pascarella one more name um the lovely senator kushner and last but not least mayor mark apologies i met mayor cabo when i dreamed this out my freshman year watching my sister graduate because believe it or not i always wanted to speak at graduation mayor mark was still running this lovely town back then i would like to graciously thank all of those who
047have allowed me the honor of being your class president which has in turn given me the humble opportunity to speak up here on your behalf today coming from a small private school a lot of you have helped me since freshman year and i'm sure my other parochial league students can relate to this lovely feeling i'm glad to see a lot of familiar faces walking the platform today and it is wonderful to know so many of us are taking the next step forwards in life unfortunately we did not get to do so many of the fun things that we were hoping to do as a class we missed out on football games and basketball season our last homecoming and just enjoying so much time together for the last year about we lost a lot of memories
048but we worked on making new ones with the little time we had thankfully we only missed out on a short part of high school and still have the rest of our lives to create a legacy for each of you in front of me today there are still decades to come filled with memories of joy and laughter and with that i want to say take ownership of your life in this world we find a lack of determined individuals but in front of me i see a sea of people who want to see a change for the better i hate to break the news to everyone but nothing in life will be handed to you if you want something there will always be a will and there will always be a way to go after it with
049tenacity and determination the impossible can always be achieved a majority of us here are young adults it is time for us to dictate our lives instead of our loving parents parents all of you guys out there you know how much we love you but now it is the time just to give us guidance and let us make the big decisions in life to you young ladies and gentlemen in front of me it is time to create the life that you want if you want your dream job you'll have to work for it if you want to start a business you know there will be thousands of sacrifices that you'll have to make in this world of sacrifices and hardships the renowned wolf of wall street jordan belfort has always resonated with me he lost his
050job after the stock market crash of 1987 and then built his own brokerage firm from the ground up although he laundered money and ended up in prison for a little bit he made drastic changes after being released he now travels the world guiding people in seminars as a motivational speaker to make them make the changes that they want in their life to me he's the epitome of taking ownership of your life when there were downfalls and hiccups he took on the challenges and made a better life for himself a quote that resonates with me from mr belford is the only thing standing between you and your goal is the bs story you keep telling yourself as to why you can't achieve it there's no time to tell yourself stories that's why you can't do something
051but instead put that extra energy into doing it giving up on your aspirations is the number one way of falling short and falling behind the rest of the race of life to achieve these wild aspirations you have to be disciplined in everything you do you have to be willing to put the time and effort into your goals and in life personally i want to see every single person in this crowd become a valuable member of society and successful in their own goals always remember some people are born lucky but no one is born unable to succeed the most important part of chasing your dreams or chasing your goals is creating balance in your life sure i just went on and on about how dedicating your life to being the best you can can but you
052need some balance next year i know a lot of you are going away to college getting that degree is important but so is having a good time and creating those lasting memories just make sure you find that healthy balance where you can succeed and enjoy those weekends once again i want to thank my peers the poultry dutiness teachers of danbury high school the staff and administration coaches board of education board of education chairperson cooper superintendent pasquerella senator kushner and this time mayor cabo for being here today i wanted to add a little bit extra this time i really want to say thank you to my teachers that i've had over this time i have so many great memories with you guys you guys are just awesome you guys have influenced me in ways that i
053can't even express but you guys are amazing and lastly i want to say thank you to my good friend mauricio ricalde who came all the way out here from pennsylvania he was he was among our class at some point he sadly had to move but it's awesome that he came out here and he's just an amazing person to have around so thank you so to the brothers and sisters i've made while at danbury high school you guys are the best and have truly molded me into who i am today god bless all of you and i'm looking forward to see the great things you guys [Applause] achieve and now the moment i know that you've all been waiting here for the presentation of our diplomas and that's jonathan scholkoff nicholas attina melody david caleb schlissel
054alina jacob gabriel corte qazi begum music [Music] brian vavaros devin smith [Music] malik stewart kevin vidmar anthony roman gabriela texera anna rodriguez victoria wolf anderson michelle seguenza lima julia wiseman amy santana jutaj grace siebert alexis thomas elizabeth san martin divine thomas and mali sarramento grisbelli ventura rosemary redroven haley suarez talita santana julia whiblishhauser grant salis nora yestremski samantha santos acell tercios ashley salz jonathan zimmerman shirley romero anna velasquez ria rana alex martinez-lille cynthia salinas richie toledo cynthia seguenza jalen wyatt alexis rodriguez sharon vera gustavo silva salsa kevin venezela reneea shields emily stefanelli michelle rose morgan smith byron wrath leonardo ephrain zapata hennessy rico nicholas wilson cuss shakira rosario alexis villacrest aliyah nyusha ruiz claire souza kelly rojas is adora tensener leslie salinas leonardo vital johanna salto siobhani sony jasmine salinas kaya kaya souza raimondo faith
055veras tiana rogers melissa tuan sarah sang fat angelina thumb jenny redroven kim trinh katherine sanchez augustino trinidad javier reyes brook stillman luis sanchez charles weimer jericho reyna lore vincent ii zachary roos richard vega wayne r lee sargento griffin seim david sig 2 angus wong patrick rosetti [Applause] christopher rita isaiah vasquez derrick rivers claro victorino danny sanchez laura souza jimenez nicholas ruslavsky erica taran carol racino's pinto sierra swords aaron sin jayden stromeier jocelyn salazar anthony schweikert john reynoso jerry tra carlos rosales caden thomas pedro salamo daniel storms joseph naybar aaron stanzione anthony ronari jaylene wilson kevin rodriguez ayanna torres matthew silva tiffany tan alexandria silva ivan yang jenna silva julia rangel amy sad jaren vines grace salvador de senya espinal chris mary crystal reyes alyssa soares nicholas now baden kevin tello sarmiento luke robles jackson vargas
056daryl rice karina velasco christian nabalton angela torres ariel siegwa edison taurus xavier ross dubar valerio vega ramir rivera emily yeps darren rodriguez nadia omi caleb silva darren turman just sorry ethan summers mahendra mengelem kaitlyn snow rover salinas luca torelli freddie segura nera jasmine tapia angeles rosano angie vasquez jasmine gonzalez elizabeth ordonez maribel gauman araceli lazzo crespo elizabeth kembanska jason puglia michelle maxie katie alexandra puglia yarif lex aya lex lee negra daniel navarro james pitino carla martinez david orsanio romigo amy moracho alexandra presents marlene salazar appina penelope peralta vivian mendez nashly perez gabrielle pires brian then ashley olivia jeremy marmolojos lexi princeton aries casela montero santiago quinzo belichica leida matos amina mufti liana matos sasha palmer kaylee mercado lucia o'brien michaela morillo connor o'brien jacenya my sincho liliana ortiz tessa marillo zoe pascal audrey mercer lauren
057quinn oscar mendez nunes anthony nguyen alves armand patel daniel donovan [Applause] kaylee arrico riley pearl aileen pham connor borregas melanie pannie avery markey tatiana fernandez taylor poppin talia murray myla macklin tasia murray aiden missouri larissa parsons jalen moray alby marley panaranda jeremy medina karina oliveira jason campisi kimberly mora helky grandoso brandon pinot jonathan morales justine padalka ayanna nuez nunez patel ariana lopex lauren your card how do i say your life demetrius madrid christopher paredes jacob leonardo andres elizabeth cernalo johnny murillo jennifer younga andrew payney matthew mareska dustin nera alexander orr christopher rivera jack oranguera samantha patrick brian morkacho sophia pereira justin mendes honares michael o'rourke amy marin [Music] grayson ortiz jewelry marin parmavilla hibba karishi sit laily morales garcia jefferson marroquin scarlett loja puma anthony palacios guatun chulika sorry jordy perretti diana mackinsala angelina torres
058anderson gabriel eric naligori christopher corsacal libercura timothy martinez [Music] brian merrell [Music] nija purier colin mcgraw michelle nyanda alex smith mamey obang marcos de souza jose oranello ryan ormundo kevin ortiz sanchez michael morello brian neugra michael mccalla yersen parra tabitha villa matthew keones pedro villa [Music] ashley roxanna lima ashley vasquez vidi rana riley tuano akira regis julia neves carolina rodriguez salcedo nathaniel mclean jennifer reneso chacon [Music] annelise morales idilani kimberly morales justin seminigo nuja milar aaron salmonigo eric mcnamara andrew melody [Music] catherine ivonne seguenza [Music] zoe mistral sean mcduff madison keller addison macy [Music] arturo martinez kendall mcnamara michael montero [Music] christian maida sebastian martinez william moore mclean [Music] james mckenna isaac perez matthew martens joshua mohan zakai campbell [Music] annel medina jennifer mazza elizabeth quinaccio [Applause] [Music] angelica alvarenga christian navarro [Music] janitha orzonia
059kameli nunez adriana novella travis niola camille quizenda noemi rivas okay all right congratulations class of [Music] [Applause] okay to confirm these diplomas they didn't work for you by the power of vested in me as superintendent of the danbury school system by the connecticut state board of education and as an agent for the danbury board of education i hereby certify that these candidates have met or exceeded the requirements needed to receive a diploma from danbury high school class of 2021 you now may move your tassels from left to right you are graduates congratulations [Applause] hey buddy it's been a good run [Applause] [Music] um [Applause] [Music] you