Berkeley Springs High School students, families, staff and faculty gathered on Thursday, May 21 in the school’s gymnasium for the 137th commencement exercises at the school on a rainy early evening.
Senior Lilliana Stevens gave the welcoming address, Eva Thompson introduced guests and Brian Ailor and Ava Slovinsky introduced guest speaker Ben Kase. Kase, Assistant Principal at Warm Springs Middle School, previously taught English at the high school and shared his reflections on those times and life ahead for the class.
Salutatorian Aviona Ambrose spoke next to the class and families, followed by Valedictorian Macy Fincham.
Fincham spoke to her classmates about the true gauge of the values in life – not our achievements but the value and power of love.
“Sometimes, love looks like being on FaceTime with a friend for hours stressed about an assignment. Sometimes, love looks like our families and friends showing up for our sports events and activities…Love is when we miss the winning shot in a game, and our team still hugs us. Love is our churches giving to those in need. These types of love are all the same,” Fincham told her class.
“We all often get caught up in societal pressures like the need to make money, maintaining a good GPA, and receiving validation from others. However, graduating has been a reminder that success can only be determined by you when you trust your own path. In other words, I believe we need to love our own paths in life,” said Fincham.
