Mascoma graduates celebrate success and look to the future
Published: 06-14-2025 1:31 PM |
WEST CANAAN — From the start, the Class of 2025 had quite the reputation at Mascoma Valley Regional High School.
“I knew this class was special when we were freshmen and beat the seniors at tug of war in the winter carnival,” class president Brody Goulette said in his speech during Friday night’s commencement ceremony on the school’s football field.
The win “was extra sweet because it was my older sister’s class,” he added, drawing laughs from the crowd.
On a more serious note, Goulette urged his classmates to use that same “drive and determination” to follow their dreams. Their future plans range widely from college to the trades to the military to the workforce.
“I know that whatever it is, we will succeed,” Goulette added.
Valedictorian Braelyn Stone referenced her four years as an art student during her speech. She compared her fellow classmates to a painting.
“We are all part of a bigger picture,” Stone said. “Whether or not you see it now, we have each contributed something unique to this canvas we call Mascoma.”
She spoke about the future. After going through a list of colors and their attributes, Stone said, “or maybe you’ll be a color the world hasn’t seen yet, something new and needed.
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“As we leave Mascoma behind and step into our canvas, remember this: no color stands alone,” she added. “We are part of a much greater masterpiece which is constantly growing and changing but the part we play, the color we choose, matters.”
Salutatorian Lily Gunnerson’s speech was inspired by a monologue called “Don’t Blink,” by Karly Anderson about how fast the school years go, from kindergarten to the end of senior year.
“It feels unreal that we’re already seniors, about to embark on this huge new adventure,” Gunnerson said after reciting the piece.
She listed off specific events from the four years. “We blinked and had our junior year with our first prom and SATs,” she said. “Time flew by and we blinked.”
Senior year came with a lot of “final” events — prom, homecoming and concerts, among others — but also a lot of “firsts,” including serving as mentors for younger students.
“Remember the time we have because it’s really easy to blink,” Gunnerson said.
Associate Principal Richard Simula, who was chosen by the graduating class to deliver the keynote address, offered words of wisdom with a touch of humor.
He urged graduates to keep in touch with their high school friends, to not default on their credit cards and to eat fruits and vegetables.
They also shouldn’t feel obligated to stay on the first post-high school path that they choose, Simula told graduates.
“Keep in mind that you’re still young,” he said. “It’s OK to change things up. It’s OK to want new things. Yes, tonight marks the beginning of the next chapter, but nowhere does it say that has to be the last chapter.”
Simula’s last piece of advice was for students to remember that everyone has a story of their own and deserves compassion.
“Please, if you take nothing else away from this speech, please make a point to remind yourself constantly that everyone in this world is just as real as you,” he said.
“Even on their worst day, all the people you ever encounter are people,” Simula added. “People who have struggled perhaps in ways you have as well and they deserve your kindness.”
Principal Tina Fleming told the class that “watching you grow over the years has been a privilege.”
The graduates have learned from their mistakes and overcome setbacks with hard work and grit. All along the way, they’ve supported each other.
“I hope you carry with you the confidence to speak up, the humility to listen and the courage to lead,” Fleming said. “The world needs your voice, your ideas and your heart.”
After they received their diplomas, Superintendent Amanda Isabelle declared the 57 graduates officially finished with high school.
Some threw their caps into the air. Hunter Dworak jumped off the platform where the members of the Class of 2025 stood and picked up his guitar to play the recessional, the song “Upside Down,” by Jack Johnson.
The group walked down the aisle as Dworak played. After singing the last line — “I don’t want this feeling to go away” — he picked up his diploma and raced down the grass aisle after his peers.
Liz Sauchelli can be reached at esauchelli@vnews.com or 603-727-3221.
Brody Anthony Albanese, Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center surgical technologist training program; Jillianne Michelle Ballou, Lakes Region Community College; Landon Corey Beattie, electrician apprenticeship; Braxton Michael Benoit, workforce; Emily Elizabeth Brewster, University of San Diego; Gareth Allen Brown, workforce; Merren Elizabeth Bunnell, University of New Hampshire; Jayson Tyler Charbono, Universal Technical Institute; Brayden William Cilbrith, workforce; Emma Lee Colburn, Lakes Region Community College; Hannah Leigh Conrad, Plymouth State University; Austin Matthew Crowder, workforce; Gunner Roy Currier, Franklin Pierce College; Reuben Hollis Densmore Elite, Lineman Training Institute; Rita Elizabeth Doe, workforce; Dominic Oliver Dorman. Saint Lawrence College; Mason John-Paul Drexler, Grand Canyon University; Hunter James Dworak, United States Marine Corps; Matthew Aidan Favreau, United States Marine Corps; Josephine Margaret Ford, Hofstra University; Brody Arthur Goulette, University of New Hampshire; Jesse James Guay, carpentry apprenticeship; Lily Michelle Gunnerson, University of New Hampshire; Lexus Marie Elise Hawxhurst, Mecca Institute; Anthony Lance Huscha, International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers; Kaden Andrew Jatczak, Colby Sawyer College; Bradley August LaHaye, workforce; Olivia Ann LaHaye, workforce; Sean Rudolph Lamoureux, Clarkson University; Ethan Thomas Lewis, Westfield State University; Alizabeth Riley MacGregor, workforce; Trevor Vincent Maheu, Franklin Pierce College; Amane Sakura Malenda, Salem State University; Taylor June Mansfield, University of New Hampshire; Mars Virginia Morgan Mazur, Southern New Hampshire University; Avery Christine McDermott, Western Kentucky University; Ryan Joshua McKinley, workforce; Tanner Patrick Moulton, Lander University; Cora Maeve Peters, Western New England University; Andrew Michael Prince, Husson University; Kali Rose Proffitt-Howlett, Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center pharmacy technician program; Jackson Christopher Rowell, Southern New Hampshire University; Neil Warren Rugg, United States Navy; Peyton Paul Sargent, University of South Carolina; Angus Joseph Shampney, workforce; Abigail Marie Shannon, Keene State University; Michael Paul Stevens-Aranda, Franklin Pierce College; Braelyn Anne Stone, Dartmouth College; Jack Thomas St. Pierre, University of New Hampshire; Andrayia Rose Styles, Plymouth State University; Anna Rose Sullivan, University of New Hampshire; Peyton Riley Vivian, Northern University of Ohio; Abigail Lee Waugh, Coastal Carolina University; Mackenzie Lee Webber, Colby Sawyer College; Ciara Ruth Wilson, gap year; Whitney Lee Wilson, Keene State University; and Marshall Allen Yorke, Plymouth State University.