SM seniors walk proudly with diplomas at San Marcos

Graduating seniors were counting the days, hours, minutes and seconds to this once-in-a-life moment: high school commencement.

That's according to San Marcos High School senior Liliana Escamilla, who stood in her red cap and gown before a packed Warkentin Stadium on a cloudy Thursday evening and told everyone, "I never thought this day would come.

"But now that it has, I’m sorry because it means leaving behind our friends, teachers and the people who shaped our lives," she said during her speech before the class of 2023.

Despite that bittersweet aspect, she and the other graduates smiled, and as some graduates walked off the stage after receiving their diplomas from Principal Dare Holdren, they waved to their families and friends in the bleachers. Some raised their fists in victory. Many smiled.

And later in her speech. Ms. Escamilla grinned and encouraged her classmates to embrace their individuality and be as confident as someone they knew who wore the same three outfits every week to San Marcos.

The seniors laughed on an evening when they were the stars of the show. Family members and friends screamed graduates’ names from the bleachers, sounded off air horns and carried balloons saying things like, "Congratulations, graduates."

The ceremony began with the San Marcos High School band playing "Pomp and Circumstance" as the graduates in blue and red caps and gowns walked down the school track and to the folding chairs on the football field. Senior class President Natty Valdovinos led the crowd in the Pledge of Allegiance, and the San Marcos High School Madrigals sang the National Anthem. After that, the graduating seniors from the Madrigals, accompanied by a guitarist, sang the Dixie Chicks’ "Landslide," a song that's all about change and growth.

Later, Dawson Kelly, the graduating senior who served as student body president this past school year, addressed his classmates from the podium.

"As you cross this stage, I ask you to acknowledge that completing this journey was no easy feat," Mr. Kelly said. "We were challenged with enduring the COVID-19 pandemic while also navigating he ever-changing social and political climate of the modern day, along with facing run-of-of-the-mill challenges and changes.

"Our days were filled with minute distractions while our years were filled with major disruptions," he said.

"As we fought to maintain our focus and strive for stability, we discovered discomfort is a prerequisite for growth," Mr. Kelly noted. "In the end, our tribulations became our triumphs. And the only true type of failure was the failure to attempt.

"The people we surrounded ourselves with filled our lives with perspectives and experiences that were invaluable to who we were," he said.

Mr. Kelly encouraged his classmates to be their authentic selves.

"Perfection is unattainable, but the pursuit of it is what allows us to be better," he said. "No problem is too big to tackle or too small to feel.

"To the class of 2023, the world is ours," he said, ending his speech. "Thank you!"

With that, the seniors cheered.

After the speeches, the graduates walked onto stage, received their diplomas and shook the hand of their principal, Mr. Holdren, then posed for a quick photo with him. For some of the seniors, a handshake wasn't enough. Some put their arms around their principal. Several didn't hesitate to hug him.

Many walked off the stage with their diploma and a big smile as they took the first steps toward the rest of their lives.

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