BY TRACY LEE TATE
Special to the Times
One hundred, twenty-five graduates were sent on their way out into the world at the Union County High Schools Class of 2024 Commencement ceremony on Friday, May 17, 2024.
The ceremony was held on the football field in the stadium – outdoors, despite the wet weather of the previous few days. Soon-to-be graduates filed onto the field to take their seats while the UCHS Symphonic Band, directed by Kelly Dorsey, played the traditional processional theme. Helping them find their seats, ushers Braden Adams, Layla Barber, Jessee Chaiken, Zoe Elixson, Devin Diggs, Brooke Goldie, Anthony Holmes and Ava Walker guided them to fill up the rows.
On the stage at the front, Union County School Board Members Curtis Clyatt, Russell Gordon, Chris Hodgson, Terra Johnson and Becky Raulerson were seated, along with Superintendent of Schools Mike Ripplinger, UCHS Principal Julie Denson, Assistant Principal Zeke Scaff and Dean Barry Sams. Senior Sponsors also had their place in the assemblage; these were: Mark Harrison, Bonnie Honour, Maria Hurt, Jeffrey Jakubik, Edwin Johnson, Tammy Jo Montford, Erica Parrish, Tiandra Sirmones, Wesley Smith, Carlisa Stanteiski, Erin Waters, Jessica Williams and Elise Worthington.
The event opened with a prayer, offered by Senior Class Treasurer Bobbie Joe Montford, followed by the Pledge of Allegiance, led by Senior Class Secretary Aliyah J’nae Smith. Senior Class President Rylie Grace Parrish then welcomed the students and crowd of friends and family in the grandstand. Parrish spoke of the challenges faced by the senior class and expressed gratitude for “the support of our families and past and present staff members who have supported us during our time at UCHS.”
UCHS Principal Julie Denson then came to the podium to recognize four special groups of students.
First, Denson recognized those students graduating with Outstanding Honors, who all achieved grade point averages of 4.0 or higher and thereby earned a purple honors cord. Students graduating with outstanding honors were: Jonathan Terry Edwards, Erich Fallschirmjager Seager, Rylie Grace Parrish, Jewel Anne Dekle, Kadence Marie Adams, Lyndee Elizabeth Griffis, Alec David Wheeler, Morgyn Ameilia Kirby, Brooke Lynn Burgess, Tanner Dale Connell, Cailynn Brooke Boggs, Ashden Richard Johnson, Grant Cooper Dicks and James Stouten Cox.
The next group honored were students graduating with high honors, achieving a grade point average between 3.75 and 3.99, and earning a gold honors cord. Students graduating with high honors were Jurney Lynne Crim, Alec Dominick Van Dike, Karli Grayce Jenkins, Alexus Brook Panozzo, Jordan Bailee Henricks, Brycen Xavier Boney, Kayley Marie Tomlinson, Robert Konner Rossiter, Brooklyn Grace Bingham, Layla Elizabeth Piggot, Alena Aisha Boyer and Makayla Nichole Nelson.
The third group honored were students graduating with honors, achieving a grade point average between 3.5 and 3.74, and earning a white honors cord. Students graduating with honors were Dylan Zachary Lane, Bobbie Jo Montford, Lily Charlene Neal, Taliyah Laraye Harper, Mary Grace Crawford, Madison Nicole Locke, Bryson Thomas Huggins, Calli Jolee Morrow, Sydney Ann Box, Jacob Tyler Alford, Whitney Kay Scott and Kaylee Annette Thompson.
The final group honored were those students who had made the choice to join the United States Military.
“These men and women have made the choice to support and defend this great nation against enemies foreign and domestic,” Denson said. “They are willing to serve and defend so that we may enjoy the very freedoms we many times take for granted.”
The graduates choosing to enter the military were instructed to stand and face the grandstands as their names and to remain standing until all had been called. They were Aidan Bell (USMC), Alena Boyer (Army NG), Brooke Burgess (USMC), Alex Cortese (Navy), Grant Dicks (USAF – graduating early and unable to attends because he was in basic training at Lackland AFB) and Mackenzie Ring.
Next, the Salutatorian of the graduating class of 2024, Rylie Parrish, gave her address.
Parrish said that when she was a freshman, she realized that she was one of the people at the top of her class and was terrified that she would have to give a speech. “I was so scared that I told my mom I had to get third in the class, so I was just below speech level.” She went on to talk about the three lessons she had learned from FFA Advisor Tom “Bub” Williams. “Whatever you do, don’t settle for a second; Think about all you have gotten from other people’s generosity (be grateful) and find something you like doing and be the best at it.” She expanded on these “Bubisms” by talking about all the support the students receive from local businesses and the community. Parrish concluded with an expression of faith and the assistance she and her fellow students had received from their belief in God and Jesus Christ.
Class of 2024 Valedictorian Erich Seager followed Parrish with his words to the graduating class. He quoted President John F. Kennedy, in a passage he said guided him through his senior year. “Do not pray for easy lives. Pray to be stronger men.” He then went on to recount the challenges, struggles and obstacles he and many of his fellow students had faced and overcome (despite moments of doubt) in their time at UCHS. He encouraged his classmates to approach this new phase in their lives with “courage and humility” and “to embrace the opportunities that await us, recognizing that each challenge comes from opportunity for growth and transformation.”
The band then played the Alma Mater, with the singing of the school song led by Senior Class Vice President Taliyah Laraye Harper, after which the graduates were called to the stage and introduced by Erin Waters before receiving the diplomas. Each received a handshake from Ripplinger, Denson, Scaff, and Sams, then posed for a picture as they exited the stage. Once all the diplomas had been distributed, the graduates resumed their seats to heat the statement that they had been waiting for all evening.
“By the power vested in me as the Superintendent of Schools, I now pronounce you graduates of Union County High School,” Ripplinger said. “You may turn your tassel.”
The graduates moved out from their seating area onto the field to form the Unity Circle, then came together in the middle to throw their caps. The gates from the grandstands were opened and family and friends were allowed on the field to congratulate their students.
