The Great Walk & Dance - TDHS Class of 2021
PROUD
Kenape Stewart celebrates his graduation from TDHS 2021. An incredible day for The Dalles. A huge shout out to the parents and their seniors on this glorious day.
Proud, Proud, Proud.
Hannah, Jesse, Yahir - Valedictorians’ Speech Class of 2021
Past behind us
Future ahead of us
Memories forever with us
Congratulations on making it this far, though our time here has been fun, it's time to move on from the appetizer to the main course.
Like at the Olive Garden when you have your soup first and then the entree next
High school is the soup and now it's time for the main dish
Although our soup seemed like it was missing something. It took a while to put my finger on it… oh yeah, half our jr and most of our senior year was on-line, kinda like forgetting to put salt in the broth.
J:
As we finish our odd, and ever-changing SENIOR year, we move into the hopefully normal and possibly most important next step of our lives.
THE SAUCE SECTION of building the perfect SUBWAY sandwich, if you will, because without the CHIPOTLE sauce, is the SANDWICH really worth it?
Anyway, as we get to step out into the real world, we prepare ourselves to [hopefully] contribute something to society as a whole.
No matter how BIG or SMALL that may be, WE are all a part of the future we now face.
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“Past behind us”
Remember your failure and successes
I can remember in biology freshman year when I failed the first test (like really failed). Bombed would be an understatement.
I was upset and before the next test, I studied very hard and paid a lot more attention
The take-home message from that first failure taught me that hard work pays off.
Learning from our mistakes is what we will need to guide us into our future.
As we walk the paths towards our fates, we will all need to keep that mentality going forward.
Our class has provided considerable successes as well. We have risen to the challenge of on-line schooling, making the best of an often-times stressful situation, by overcoming the worldwide pandemic.
Enjoy failures (quote)(worry=suffer 2x)
In elementary school, at the end of the year, we’d get a field day, maybe a trip to the pool, to celebrate the end of the year
In 6th grade, we’d end off each trimester with the famous “Wildcat market”, where we’d spend the day shopping, spending our hard-earned wildcat bucks on overpriced licorice, all in celebration of making it through the year
And now, we’re in the midst of the ceremony that is celebrating the culmination of 12 years of schooling
We all love celebrating the successes, but we often overlook all the failures and defeats we’ve encountered along the way. Every time we fail, we learn something new, become one step closer to succeeding
Asked me what I learned in the classes I got an A in…..not much, school stuff,
Now, ask me what I learned when I got benched my freshman year of soccer…(sigh) I learned nothing is handed to you, and it gave me an opportunity to showcase my true grit, and I’ll remember that lesson for much longer than what year Genghis Khan died.
We have all failed in one way or another, and we will continue to fail, but that’s okay, Learn from them, and apply that knowledge in the future
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“Future ahead of us”
J:
As a very wise Ms. Pearson once said, “it is better to aim for the stars and hit the moon, than to aim at the nearest bush, and hit the nearest bush.”
Pushing yourself to meet your potential is the most important aspect of succeeding in your adult life.
Without the ability to set goals for yourself,
the confidence to set them high enough,
and the tenacity to reach for them,
your potential will be nothing but a height you could’ve reached
A lottery you could’ve won
Or a La Fogata burrito you could have eaten.
Push yourself to reach for the stars, and you very well could surprise yourself.
Along the lines of goals and aspirations
I am not only excited to see what everyone does after this moment
But also to see how far we all go
Every single one of us has grown in the best ways possible over the last four years
And it gets to just keep getting better from here
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“Memories forever w/ us”
J: There are countless memories and experiences, hardships and successes that we’ve gathered throughout our PRE- ADULT- LIVES
THESE have shaped us somewhat, though thankfully not entirely, into the people we are today.
A standout for me is the time I was traveling to BAJA MEXICO with the boys of the family.
on this 36-hour trip, we took the liberty upon ourselves to systematically analyze and determine that Oregon was in fact not the most boring state. That title went to North Dakota, because the only thing South Dakota has is Mount Rushmore.
Anyway, these STORIES and ADVENTURES we hold onto, are what make life worth living.
So no matter how old and wrinkly you get, never stop contributing to them.
Thank you also for everyone who taught us to be independent to prepare us for our futures
An example is how Ms. Taylor really helped me prioritize what is the most important and what I need to get done this last trimester
I.E. i raised last week’s D in English 104, to a _______
Every single teacher I have had has taught me a valuable lesson that I hope to use in the years that lie ahead
From Wyseth’s Hawaiian Biology fieldtrip to Kiser’s allowing my love of math to become a career
You can all thank Mr. Dorzab for teaching me how to speak in front people...and my PC.
Teachers at The Dalles have our futures in their capable hands
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Talk ab hatchlings and being kicked out of nest
We are like hatchlings about to leave the nest and it is time to fly
Some of us are already spreading our wings, while others may need a gentle prod off that safe branch.
Like the amazing Riverhawks we are, we will all soar the great open horizons ahead
J: To close, I’d like to give a big thank you to a few people.
Our teaching staff for preparing us to be independent.
MRS. COMMERFORD
MRS KISER
MR. HAIGHT (doge to the moon)
MR. LIN
MRS. PEARSON
to name a few, though all of you are amazing,
I would like to thank our friends for making the journey worth our while,
Clay, we will be nuking down the highway on our cafe racers this summer,
and Skyler, one day Dwayne the rock Johnson will wanna look like us.
Huge thanks to our administration for leading our school through UNIMAGINABLY COMPLEX decisions and changing times, and YET still managing to get us in the classroom, and out here to graduate.
THANKS TO Our parents for putting up with all the questionable things we did, Mom, Kurt, and Dad, Love you guys.
And lastly, Tony Stark for taking one for the team, and snapping away Thanos. Without his valiant efforts, half of us would be gone, and our leader would be a plus-sized purple alien.
So with that said, Live, laugh, and love, gangsters. It’s been real.
“Past behind us”
Future ahead of us
Memories forever with us
