FREEPORT

Community was the theme of the day at Freeport High School’s 2018 graduation ceremony Sunday.

The tradition of community support was highlighted by student speaker Benjamin Barry, who shared memories from his sophomore year when the baseball team made a run to the state championship game.

“As you probably know, the baseball team had an incredible playoff run in 2016 that took them all the way to the state championship,” he said. “I wasn’t even on the team, and game after game it would make me so happy to see the level of support the Freeport community brought to the field.

“The number of fans would always far outnumber those of the opposing team,” Barry added, “even in games an hour away from Freeport.”

Diane Whitmore, a senior class advisor and Freeport teacher for 17 years, highlighted the impact the school community had on her during the keynote address. Retiring after 32 years in education, she noted how she’d become discouraged by education and was looking for new opportunities before taking a job as a part-time Latin teacher at Freeport.

“That was 17 years ago, and it’s been the best 17 years of my 32 years of teaching,” said Whitmore. “We have a school where teachers are comfortable being themselves. There is mutual respect between teachers and students without us being strict and stuffy.

“We have a school where students come to prom however and with whomever they want,” she added. “We have a school where people line the hallways and cheer for our championship teams.”

It’s an environment students are going to miss. While lining up for graduation, Nicholas Eaton shared his thoughts on leaving Freeport and looking towards the future.

“My opinion is graduation is kind of bittersweet,” said Eaton. “It can feel like a super big change, which it is, at the same time it’s kind of great.”

Whitmore said she wrote a personal message for each student that she would email to them, and offered a final bit of parting advice for the graduates.

“Never miss an opportunity to dance. Check your e-mail. Don’t stay stuck in a job or situation that isn’t working for you,” she said. “Break away, you might just find what you’re looking for. And when you find it, make sure it’s somewhere you can be real, be yourself.”

Barry encouraged his classmates and friends to immerse themselves in the new communities they find.

“I could not have asked for better classmates, for better friends, or for a better family,” he said. “As our paths diverge, I will remember the lessons you taught me and memories we’ve made.

“On your new paths, find your friends, find your mentors, and find your community,” Barry added. “The rest will follow, as it did at Freeport High School.”

Class President Caleb Salter- Gurau implored his 106 classmates to reflect on the people who helped them graduate — and encouraged them to rely on their own resilience moving forward.

“It will get harder. You will experience peaks and valleys but the depths of your valleys facilitate the height of your OKs,” he said. “If you let in those around you and use the perseverance you’ve developed the past four years, you will be OK.

“Stay true to yourself, believe in your ability to overcome and keep it real,” added Salter-Gurau, “at all costs.”

UPDATE: A previous version of this story has been updated to correct the spelling of speaker Benjamin Barry’s name.

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